Hands of Stone - Christian Giudice [110]
Things were not all well in the Leonard camp either. His long-time trainer Dave Jacobs quit after complaining that Leonard should have fought a tune-up bout first. “That sort of fight takes its toll on your body,” Jacobs said, referring to the grueling brawl in Montreal. “You need a tune-up to get the timing back. I love Sugar Ray but I don’t think it’s healthy for him to be fighting Duran right away.” An indifferent Leonard shrugged off the split.
The Canadian tax department also weighed in with a claim for $2 million from Leonard’s purse for the first fight. The Olympic Installations Board, who organized the fight, had claimed they had been given an exemption from federal taxes, but the Government begged to differ. The Board reported a loss of $900,000 on the promotion when everyone else involved made a massive profit. Despite this, Angelo Dundee knew his man was focused as never before. “I was very pleased with the way Ray prepared for that fight,” said Dundee. “I told him not to let this guy psych him out. He was mad enough about the abuse Duran gave to his wife and he used it as motivation.”
Duran did his best to play the part expected of him. “You’re going to see blood in this fight,” he told a New York press conference attended by both boxers three weeks before the event. “I don’t like to see clowns in the ring. I like to see boxers. To beat me, you have to come into the ring and fight me. He goes into the ring and tries to imitate Ali, but an imitator is a loser.” He then pushed his face close to Leonard’s and said, “I’m going to knock you out. I don’t like you.” Leonard kept his cool, praising Duran’s strength, toughness and intelligence and predicting only that it would be a great fight. A few days later, at another presser in New Orleans, he even joked, “He’s a lovable guy. I want my son to be just like him.”
The Panamanian reporters who made the trip to New Orleans could read Duran better than anybody. They also reported that Flacco Bala had been dancing with young girls from Leonard’s camp. That only added to the intrigue. “Two foreign girls (who had been with Flacco Bala) arrived at Duran’s suite the morning before the confrontation,” wrote journalist Ricardo Borbua. “And it made us think and suspect that many disturbing things had passed before the fight because Duran either was not in optimal point of his physical conditioning or he had been traveling New Orleans in a bad state and little preparation. To say to the contrary would be dishonest.”
With three days to go, the New York Times reported that only about 15,000 tickets had been sold in the 80,000-seat stadium. King sold the fight package to the Hyatt for $17.5 million and held the Latin American rights with Neil Gunn from Facility Enterprises. Ringside seats ranged from $500 to $1,000 apiece, while prices for the 345 closed-circuit theaters went from $35-$50. Not only had the promotional activities got a late start but also the bout would fall on Thanksgiving weekend, a very busy time to travel. Many fans decided the trip was not worth the hassle. Also ABC had reserved the rights to show the fight thirty days after the bout, leaving some to wait for the replay. While the first Montreal fight amassed close to $30 million, the rematch remained a chilly sell.
Duran’s paternal grandmother, Clara, came to New Orleans and put a crucifix around Duran’s neck for protection the day of the fight. He would need more that that.
IT MAY BE the most notorious pre-fight meal in history. At 1 p.m. the day of the fight, having made the weight, Duran gorged. The exact combination of foods, and the amounts, would be debated for years to come. Newspapers differed on the quantities