Date: 9th February 1991
Venue: Madison Square Garden, New York
Title: WBC World Super-welterweight Title
Promoter: Victory Promotions
Referee: Arthur Mercante Jr
Tv: Showtime Championship Boxing
Terry Norris
(
26
-
3
-
0
)
Weight: 152½ lbs
Ray Leonard
(
36
-
1
-
1
)
Weight: 154 lbs
On Saturday 9th February 1991, boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard stepped into the ring at Madison Square Garden to face Terry Norris for the WBC World Super-welterweight Title.
Leonard was coming off a 14-month layoff and was moving down in weight from super middleweight to junior middleweight. This was his first fight at this weight class since 1984.
The fight was promoted by Victory Promotions, which was owned by Leonard's attorney Mike Trainer. It was televised live on Showtime, and Leonard was expected to earn over $4 million, with Norris guaranteed at least $1 million.
Leonard was a 12 to 5 favorite, but it was the younger Norris who would dominate the fight. In the second round, Norris landed a left hand that sent Leonard to the canvas. Norris then ran forward and landed another right hand for which he was warned by the referee that he would be disqualified if he committed another foul like that.
Norris would score another knockdown late in the seventh round with a short right hand. Leonard was dazed but managed to survive the round. Norris went on the attack, but Leonard managed to stay on his feet for the rest of the fight.
The judges scored the fight unanimously in Norris's favor, with scores of Billy Costello 116-110, Barbara Perez 120-104, and Sid Rubenstein 119-103. Norris won his second title defense, improving his record to 27-3-0, while Leonard suffered his second loss in a row and fell to 36-2-1.
The crowd at Madison Square Garden was only 7,495, a far cry from the sellout crowds Leonard was used to. This was a sign that Leonard's star was beginning to fade, and his best days were behind him.
Despite the loss, Leonard remained one of the greatest fighters of all time, with a career that included world titles in five different weight classes. Norris, meanwhile, would go on to become a two-time world champion and one of the top fighters of the early 1990s.
The fight was a one-sided affair, and it was clear that Norris was the superior fighter on this night. It was a tough loss for Leonard, but it was also a sign that the sport was changing, and a new generation of fighters was emerging.