Sugar Ray Leonard
Sugar Ray Leonard
Ray Charles "Sugar" Leonardis an American former professional boxer, motivational speaker, and occasional actor. Often regarded as one of the greatest boxers of all time, he won world titles in five weight divisions, including a run as the undisputed welterweight champion. Leonard was part of "The Fabulous Four" a group of boxers who all fought each other throughout the 1980s, consisting of himself, Roberto Durán, Thomas Hearns and Marvin Hagler. "The Fabulous Four" created a wave of popularity in the...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionAthlete
Date of Birth17 May 1956
CountryUnited States of America
I didn't excel too highly in school, but I felt that I was moving ahead - and not just in boxing - but in life.
I was just such a quiet kid. I found boxing when I was 14 years old. I went down to the gym because my brother, who used to beat me up all the time, introduced me to boxing. I found boxing to be a sport that I felt safe in because I controlled what was in those four squares.
I went through real darkness, but the ring was my light. That was the one place I felt safe. I could control what happened in the ring. My heart turned icy.
I was not athletically inclined. I was very quiet, introverted, non-confrontational. My three older brothers were athletes - basketball, football - but I was kind of a momma's boy. Then one day, my brother Roger encouraged me to go to the boxing gym with him. I tried the gloves on, and it just felt so natural.
I always expect unexpected challenges. Boxing is not an easy sport.
For the most part, I think video games do a good job of capturing the essence of boxing. However, I'd like to continue to see them push the realism, emphasizing the skill involved.
When you're a boxer, there is a lot of downtime and long periods of inactivity.
I watched Muhammad Ali, how when he would speak, how it was such a thing of beauty. It sounded so wonderful. And I wanted to be like him.
I asked my kids, 'Do you know what Papa used to do.' They said, 'You were a boxer, you won the Olympics!' And that's what they know.
I made mistakes, but I'm luckier than most. I've got a successful business, lots of fans who think a lot of me and a family who loves me.
I don't hold any regrets whatsoever about my life besides hurting people I loved.
I came from nothing and achieved humungous fame and fortune. But I worked hard. I had discipline and determination. I had that ice in me.
I never met a person as determined as my mother. From working hard for six kids to just trying to keep the household down or maintain my father's discipline, my dad, I'm so much like my father too. My father was so introverted, quiet, shy, nice. I got attributes from my father and mother.
Fighters display two things. They display confidence, or they display a look that says, 'I'm not sure.'