Hagler agrees to bout

Press, 20 August 1986, Page 68

Hagler agrees to bout

NZPA-Reuter Bartlett, New Hampshire The' undisputed middleweight boxing champion, Marvin Hagler, ended the suspense yesterday and said he was willing to fight Sugar Ray Leonard — but not until next March.

Hagler has agreed to fight the former welterweight and junior middleweight world champion, now retired, in a March, 1987, bout to be promoted by Top Rank Inc., said a boxing promoter, Pat Petronelli, yesterday. The fight would probably be held at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, a spokesman for Top Rank said.

No statement from the Leonard camp was expected today, according to his attorney, r Mike Trainer. §

Leonard, aged 30, has been trying to get Hagler to agree to the bigmoney fight for the last three-and-a-half months. A bout between Leonard and Hagler, who are among boxing’s brightest stars even though one of them has retired and the other has been threatening to do the same, could have a total purse of as much as SUSIS million. Hagler, aged 32, agreed to the fight because he did not want future boxing fans ever to be able to say he ducked a challenger, Mr Petronelli said.

Hagler was reluctant to fight Leonard, who had said he would come out of retirement only, for a bout with Hagler, because he felt Leonard did not deserve it without first having met a ranked contender, Mr Petronelli said.