Leon Spinks vs Bernardo Mercado

Former world heavyweight champion Leon Spinks restored his position among the leading heavyweight contenders by stopping Bernardo Mercado in the ninth round at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, on October 2, 1980. The 12-round contest served as a WBC eliminator and was staged on the programme headed by Larry Holmes’s championship defence against Muhammad Ali. The significance of that main event gave the evening an unusual atmosphere, for both Spinks and Mercado had direct connections to the heavyweight picture and were fighting for the right to meet the winner.

Spinks had experienced a sharp rise and an equally rapid decline after taking the undisputed championship from Ali in only his eighth professional contest. He lost the return match seven months later and was then knocked out in one round by Gerrie Coetzee. During 1980, however, he began rebuilding with victories over Alfredo Evangelista and Kevin Isaac, together with a draw against Eddie Lopez. He entered the Mercado contest with a modest record of nine wins, two defeats and two draws, but remained a recognised former champion.

Mercado brought a considerably more imposing record of 26 victories and two defeats, with 21 wins inside the distance. The tall Colombian had knocked out the previously unbeaten Trevor Berbick and, seven months before facing Spinks, had stopped Earnie Shavers in the seventh round. Those victories had established him as the WBC’s leading contender. At six feet four inches, Mercado held clear advantages in height and reach and possessed sufficient power to punish any careless advance.

Spinks nevertheless carried the fight to him. Rather than remain outside against the taller man, the former champion worked his way forward behind a busy attack and tried to force Mercado into exchanges at shorter range. His method was seldom tidy, but his irregular movement and persistent punching prevented Mercado from settling into a comfortable rhythm. Mercado attempted to hold the contest at distance and use his longer arms, yet Spinks repeatedly crowded him and made him work at a pace he did not favour.

The middle rounds became increasingly physical. Mercado remained dangerous whenever he had room to extend his punches, particularly with the right hand, but Spinks accepted the risk of entering and continued to press. He worked to the body, brought punches over the top and kept Mercado occupied on the retreat. The Colombian’s early sharpness began to diminish as the rounds accumulated, while Spinks maintained the same forward effort that had carried him through 15 rounds against Ali in their first meeting.

By the eighth round, the balance had moved towards Spinks. Mercado’s punches had lost some of their speed, and he was finding it more difficult to prevent the shorter man from reaching close quarters. Spinks continued to attack with both hands, giving Mercado little rest and making the larger fighter defend rather than use his own power. The former champion was taking chances, but his greater activity and stamina were now governing the contest.

Spinks increased the pressure in the ninth and drove Mercado into sustained defensive work. The Colombian, tired and no longer answering sufficiently, was caught by a succession of punches as Spinks pressed for the finish. The referee intervened at 2 minutes 52 seconds, awarding Spinks a technical knockout victory. Mercado protested little, having been worn down by the pace and volume of the smaller man’s attack.

The victory advanced Spinks’s record to 10-2-2 and placed him in line for a challenge to Holmes. It was his most important success since defeating Ali and showed that, despite the disorder that had followed his championship reign, he remained a formidable fighter when properly prepared. Mercado had entered as the taller, more powerful and more highly ranked man, but Spinks denied him the distance he required and broke down his resistance through continuous pressure. Eight months later, Spinks received his promised championship opportunity against Holmes, although that contest ended in defeat inside three rounds.

For me, this is one of Leon Spinks’s best performances, even though it was buried beneath the Holmes-Ali main event. By then, many people had dismissed Leon as a lucky former champion. He had lost the Ali rematch, been flattened in one round by Gerrie Coetzee and looked short of discipline outside the ring.

Bernardo Mercado was no routine opponent. He was six-foot-four, could punch and had knocked out Trevor Berbick and Earnie Shavers. On paper, he had the size and form to keep Spinks outside and eventually catch him coming forward.

What Leon did well was deny Mercado the room to use those long arms. His approach was untidy, as it often was, but there was method behind it. He worked his way inside, attacked the body and kept forcing Mercado backwards. Mercado was dangerous when he could set his feet, but Leon never allowed him enough quiet time.

By the later rounds, Mercado was tiring, and his punches had lost their authority. Spinks kept the pressure on until the referee stopped it at 2:52 of the ninth.

That victory earned Leon another shot at Larry Holmes. He was badly beaten there, but that should not diminish this performance. Against Mercado, Spinks was fit, determined and tactically effective. It proved his win over Ali had not been produced by luck alone.