Thomas Hearns/Wilfred Benitez 1981 segment 2 of 13

[Blackjesus3]

wth Wilfreds defense is so good, this guys so underrated

[bvb7589]

Bad technique against Benitez...You hit those kind of "defensive boxers" in the middle of the body and after they can't move, then you hit them at the head....Mexican boxers do it all the time; it works wonders. That's why J.C. Chavez beat all of them BADLY. 107-2-6 speak for itself.

[93johnk]

2:23 holy shit are you fucking kidding me that was the longest series of misses ever!

[akilddddd]

you see and its defensive fighetsr that make so called real fighters always look bad lols .

[TheGatorfan93]

Hearns next to tyson,is the biggest waste of talent.

[28rampage]

@TheGatorfan93 how the hell did hearns waste his talent? he remained dedicated his whole career the only reason he came up short vs , barkley, hagler and leonard was due to his punch resistance every fight that he got ko'd he was winning but got caught and his chin let him down,don't forget there is nobody who has ever outboxed or outclassed hearns and the fact he was a 5 weight world champ well 6 if you count the wbu and ibo titles he won at cruiser makes a great career and he ducked no one

[TheGatorfan93]

@28rampage He wasted his talent by not being a boxer,instead tried to be a slugger.He beats leonard in the first fight had he stuck to his fight plan the first 5 rounds.He didn't have a bad chin,he just wore himself down by taking unneccesary punishment when he fought on the inside.

[28rampage]

@TheGatorfan93 yeah well i suppose that makes sense, i just wasn't sure exactly what you meant by your statement, i believe he could have boxed hagler to a points win aswell if he had stayed on the outside but i suppose he wouldn't have been the hitman if he had boxed clever his whole career although he probably would have ended up with a better record if he had, the 1st barkley fight is really bizarre i mean duran dropped him with a sloppy right hand and hearns was beating the shit out of him

[honestman43]

@28rampage It actually took a 4 punch combination for Duran to put down Barkley.

Hearns has always had a weak chin. His legs would go when he got hurt. Probably his biggest weakness was not being able to take a few good punches.

[28rampage]

@honestman43 yeah thats right all i remembered from the fight was the last right hand that put him down but still tommy landed much better shots than that and yeah i know tommy's weaknesses as i've studied him for a while, he seemed to struggle with brawlers who could take his shots and if they got inside they usually hurt him bad, he actually blamed his legs for his problems and went to a specialist who told him his leg muscles required for boxing were to weak

[carmodifire]

@28rampage That's the price for being tall at a lower weight. But, otherwise it wouldn't be fair, as no one would be able to beat him. I think ever SRR would be outpointed by the Hitman, till he KO's him late.

[28rampage]

@carmodifire yeah i think hearns could outbox anyone with that whiplash of a jab but he seemed to get caught at some point or another in the big fights, imagine he had the chin of hagler lol now that would be interesting

[carmodifire]

@28rampage i THINK HE WOULD BE BANNED FROM BOXING! haha, I think that Hearns should have done more stregnth training for his legs, and he overtrained for the Leonard 1, he came in underweight. I think he could have won it if he didn't. He didn't even know how to clinch then!

[28rampage]

and he took everything hearns hit him with and landed a blinding punch and finished the fight, totally weird how boxing works sometimes, it just seemed that when hearns fought anyone it was always the very best version of the fighters in question, i believe it was the fear factor hearns created in his opponents that made them so tuned in on fight night bcos they knew any slight fuck up and hearns would put them in the ground..i totally understand what you meant now bro..

[carmodifire]

@28rampage cuezas said the only time he was scared was when he fought hearns

[28rampage]

@carmodifire yeah a lot of people were afraid of tommy even the hardman duran was supposedly intimidated when hearns was around him

[set2light]

Hahaha, Barkley must've given poor Tommy Hearns brain damage as he sent Hearns through the ropes. Hahaha, Duran, a little lightweight, went on to beat Barkley, something Hearns could do twice!!!!!!!!! Hearns is so overated. He couldn't beat his natural rival, Leonard, something Duran did brilliantly!!

[POTATER1228]

@set2light did you forget that Hearns knocked out Duran in two rounds? Something not even Leonard who fought Duran 3 times couldnt do? how many others can brag that they knocked out Duran cold?

[BruceinFalkirk]

@set2light

On the other hand, Hearns annihilated Duran and, here, he masterfully outboxes the man who, in his previous fight, masterfully outboxed Duran.

[PeekaPeep]

Btw, that's some WICKED head movement from Benitez right there at the end of that round. Anyone who can make a notoriously quick and accurate puncher like Tommy miss that much has got some serious skills in the ring. Benitez was certainly one of those individuals. Amazing display of defense...

[sinusbradycardia]

@PeekaPeep Wow, even with all that speed and flurry of Hearns, he barely taped Benitez. Hearns was so much bigger, so fast, a great technical fighter, stronger than Bentinez. Hearns is winning because he is overwhelming Benitez with what I mentioned above. Hearns did very little damage.  It is amazing to watch Benitez. Even if a fighter when on the defensive against Hearns and played all defensive Hearns would still get them, unless it Benitez.

[arkansoul]

No one in the history of boxing can dodge a 15-punch combination like Benitez.

[Conquerer1000]

@arkansoul Maybe Sweet Pea

[arkansoul]

@Conquerer1000  Yeah, I forgot about him...

[akilddddd]

@arkansoul whitaker and thats about it .

[diamondbreaker23]

Jorsalfar, lets be honest. Tommy was past his prime when he got beat by Iran Barkley and he was fighting a younger, stronger, naturally bigger opponent who was hungry. Also, iron jawed, no doubt hall of famer James "lights out" Toney said Iran Barkley hits harder than most the hw he has fought, so I mean yeah... Also, Iran had his day, lets not forget he has won titles at 3 different weight classes, a feat that very few men have been able to accomplish. So take it easy on my man Hearns.

[elainesman]

@diamondbreaker23 well said dude= echo that.

[Jorsalfar]

I really don't get how Hearns could lose TWICE to such an unspectacular boxer as Iran Barkley.

[PeekaPeep]

That's just it. Barkley was unspectacular as a boxer (brawled a little too much when he should've boxed; was actually a fairly decent boxer as shown in his memorable fight against a surprisingly motivated Duran), but he was a solid contender who could obviously take a good punch and didn't mind getting beat up if it meant getting one of his own shots in there for good measure. Such display of heart and sheer will was what led to him upsetting Hearns twice, each time for the championship title.

[Jorsalfar]

True, but it didnt help him against James Toney.;) He really exposed his lack of boxing skills and ring smart.

[PeekaPeep]

I agree, but then again it was Barkley's own fault for going back down a weight class to face him when he should've established himself at light heavyweight a tad longer. It wasn't that he lacked boxing skills (he did have 'em, just not the consistency to use 'em when the need demanded it). If he had took the time in his training to refine that part of his game, no doubt in my mind Barkley would've pulled out those close decision bouts against many of the other notables he faced in his prime.

[Jorsalfar]

I always wondered why Barkley went down and vacated the title he won so prestigiously from Hearns...he even fought as a heavyweight later on! I think he just wanted to show that he was better than Toney, since they hated eachother it seems. Which of course he wasn't.

[PeekaPeep]

Haha, got that right! Barkley was straight TRIPPIN' if he thought he could get the better of Toney given the latter's skill level at the time. Then again, not many fighters were able to do it either. Toney was (and still is) a very good boxer and an EXCELLENT counterpuncher, arguably the best I've seen in recent memory. Gotta hand it to Barkley, though. If there ever was a real-life Rocky Balboa it was him. Too bad Hearns had to play the role of Apollo Creed in that respect, lol...

>;-)

[SoJuDaMaN]

hearns is such a great boxer, it really takes someone who can punch real hard to win against hearns. I mean, not a even a prime Leonard could beat Hearns boxing. He had to knock him out to win the fight back then. (Hearns was up by 2-3 rounds on the scorecards going into the 13th)

And yet Hearns is not remembered for his tremendous boxing skills, but for his abnormal punching power.

[Unwin85]

two of my favourite fighters going at it

the agression of Hearns and the sheer wizardry of Benitez

[pulgante]

Benitez era super rápido mucho de los golpes que tiro hearns ni lo tocaron.

[Mowglieboy69]

Benitez is doing some job of making Hearns miss. Hearns is still undoubtedly winning though, based on aggression, control of the ring, and effective body punching.