Marvin Hagler will go down in boxing history as one of the most beloved fighters to step in the ring.
A true warrior, ‘Marvelous’ has been involved in some epic showings. Perhaps the best example of this is Hagler’s three-round war with Thomas Hearns.
As one of the ‘Four Kings’, he is considered to be one of the greatest to ever do it, with Hagler even receiving praise from Mike Tyson.
Although there have been plenty of impressive performances from Hagler, one of his most brutal outings allowed him to defend his world title.
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Marvin Hagler defeated William Lee via first-round knockout in 1982
Having become a champion in January 1981, Hagler would defend his WBA and WBC World Middleweight titles twice before the end of the year. In his first outing of 1982, Hagler would have his champion status challenged by William Lee.
‘Caveman’ Lee was a 21-2 professional and went into his first world title challenge on an eight-fight knockout streak. However, he would not get much time to prove his worth against Hagler.
Meeting in March 1982, the fight in Atlantic City between Halger and Lee would be a short one.
The world title fight was scheduled for 15 rounds. However, all Hagler needed to defend his title was 67 seconds.
A two-punch combination from range would find the chin of Lee, before follow-up punches would add more damage to the challenger. Lee would hit the canvas as the commentator said, “Lee goes down, face-down on the canvas!”
Although Lee would return to his feet to continue fighting, Hagler’s pressure and punishment would end the bout moments after the restart.
Hagler successfully defended his world title, with Lee fighting just two more times in his career after the loss.
Marvin Hagler’s knockout streak would be halted by Roberto Duran
When Hagler knocked out Lee, it was his fifth finish in a row. Going on to add another three stoppages to his resume in his next three fights, ‘Marvelous’ was riding an eight-fight knockout streak when he faced Roberto Duran.
Duran and Hagler fought in November 1983, as ‘El Cholo’ had a record of 77-4. Despite the fight being a close one, Hagler would emerge as the victor.
The champion would win the bout via unanimous decision, as Hagler was unable to stop the former ‘Fighter of the Century’. However, the win improved Hagler’s record to 58-2-2.