Thomas “Hitman” Hearns: An Underappreciated All-Time Great

Thomas Hearns is a fighter who is probably best known for his losses against Sugar Ray Leonard and Marvelous Marvin Hagler. That is a damned shame because Hearns was an outstanding fighter in his own right, one of the most uniquely gifted men ever seen in the ring.

Thomas Hearns was an accomplished amateur winning 155 of 163 bouts but scoring only 11 knockouts. The gangly Hearns, standing 6’1’’, showed no signs of the legendary punching power that would come to define him as a professional. He turned professional in November 1977 with a second round knockout victory over Jerome Hill. Hearns stopped his first 17 opponents before finally being extended to the 10 round distance by Alfonso Hayman in April 1979. Over the next year, Hearns continued to storm through the Welterweight division, destroying men such as Harold Weston, Bruce Curry, Saensak Muangsurin, Angel Espada, and Eddie Gazo. By May 1980, “The Hitman’s” record stood at 28-0, 26 KOs.

He then faced WBA Welterweight champion Pipino Cuevas. Cuevas was a destroyer in his own right, with 24 KOs in 27 victories and 11 successful title defenses. On August 2nd 1980, the irresistible force met the immovable object. By the middle of the first round, we had our answer about how this one was going to go. Cuevas was woefully overmatched against the catlike quickness and devastating power of the “Hitman”. Two crushing rights closed the show in the second round. A new boxing star was born! Hearns defended the title three times and signed to face WBC Welterweight champion Sugar Ray Leonard in September 1981.

This was one of the most anticipated matchups in recent boxing history featuring two outstanding young champions both at the peak of their powers. The Hitman dominated the first five rounds, stalking Sugar Ray and tagging him repeatedly with the left jab. Leonard turned the tide in the 6th staggering Hearns with a left hook and battering him to the body over the next two rounds. Tommy rallied, out boxing Sugar Ray over the next four rounds. After 12 rounds, Hearns appeared to be comfortably ahead while Leonard was badly swollen under his left eye. However, by the 13th, Hearns was tiring amidst the intense Las Vegas heat and Leonard battered him from pillar to post. Then in the 14th, Sugar Ray caught Tommy with a right which was the beginning of the end. Leonard teed off on him against the ropes until referee Davey Pearl stepped in and stopped the fight at the 1:45 mark. The Hitman’s aura of invincibility had been shattered.

Hearns won his next six fights but only two by stoppage, as he was plagued with hand problems and perhaps a loss of confidence as well. However, Tommy was still good enough to win a convincing decision over master stylist and future hall of famer, Wilfred Benitez, capturing the WBC Super Welterweight title in December 1982.

In June 1984, Hearns was scheduled to face legendary WBA Jr. Middleweight champion Roberto Duran. Seven months earlier, Duran had gone the distance with Middleweight champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler in a spirited and competitive battle losing by a unanimous decision. Most experts favored Hearns by decision but no one expected what came next. The Hitman was back, exploding all over Duran and dropping him twice in the first round. Hearns ended matters in the second round with a crushing right which left Duran face first on the canvas out cold. This was impossible! Was this real? No one did this to the legendary Duran! The Hitman was now the hottest superstar in boxing.

10 months later, “The Hitman” squared off against Hagler. These two men truly did not like each other and the bad blood stemmed from a cancelled 1982 showdown. At the time, the fight was viewed as a mismatch but now with Hagler seeming to slip a bit and Hearns now surging, the fight was viewed as a 50/50 proposition with many experts favoring Hearns.

What followed was eight minutes of pure hell! For those who questioned whether or not Hearns could hurt the iron chinned Hagler, the answer came within the first 30 seconds of the fight when the “Hitman” rocked Hagler with a crushing right. The Marvelous One quickly recovered and the two men traded furiously. By the middle of the round, Hagler was badly cut above the bridge of the nose but continued to press Hearns relentlessly.

Hearns, on rubbery legs already, tried to box in round two. However, he could not keep Hagler off as the Marvelous One pounded away to the body and rocked him late in the round. Tommy tried to fight back but his right hand was now broken. By the third round, Hagler was now bleeding profusely. Richard Steele led him over to the ring doctor who allowed the fight to continue. Marvelous Marvin poured it on at that point, clipping Hearns 30 seconds with a tremendous right that sent him reeling across the ring. One final right sent Tommy crumbling to the canvas. Hearns rose at 9 but was completely done. Referee Richard Steele stopped the fight. The Hitman had suffered another devastating loss.

But we had not seen the last of Thomas Hearns. After three straight victories, he challenged WBC Light Heavyweight champion Dennis Andries winning by a 10th round TKO. He then moved down in weight to face Juan Roldan for the vacant WBC Middleweight championship in October 1987. Hearns starched Roldan in 4 rounds. The Hitman was now a 4 division world champion. However, in June 1988, Hearns lost the title in shocking fashion by a 3rd round TKO to Iran Barkley. After a lackluster win over James Kinchen, the Hitman signed to face old rival Sugar Ray Leonard in a long awaited June 1989 rematch.

Prior to the fight, Hearns was considered shot and most experts were picking an easy victory for Leonard. However, the Hitman with his size and power was still a nightmare matchup for Sugar Ray. Hearns dropped Leonard in the 3rd and 11th rounds. However, Leonard, ever the competitor, had the Hitman in trouble in the 5th and 9th. Sugar Ray nearly had Tommy out on his feet in the 12th but wasn’t able to finish him. The vast majority of ringsiders felt Hearns had done enough to earn the decision but the judges ruled the fight a draw. Nonetheless, Tommy had gained a measure of revenge against his old rival winning the fight in the eyes of the public.

Hearns challenged WBA Light Heavyweight champion Virgil Hill in June 1991. Hill was the consensus best Light Heavyweight in the world. He’d been champion for nearly four years with 10 successful defenses. However, the supposedly ancient Hitman outpointed him convincingly over the course of 12 rounds, a win that becomes more impressive when one considers Hill went on to earn a place in the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Although the Hitman would go on to fight for another 15 years, this was his last truly special moment in the ring. In March 1992, he lost the WBA Light Heavyweight title by split decision to old nemesis Barkley. Hearns moved up to Cruiserweight and won 9 consecutive fights over the next 7 years, along the way capturing the NABF Cruiserweight title with a 1st round TKO over Dan Ward in January 1994. In April 1999, The Hitman defeated former WBA Cruiserweight champion Nate Miller by a unanimous decision. Hearns suffered an ankle injury and was stopped by Uriah Grant in the 3rd round in April 2000. The now 46 year old Hitman returned to the ring in 2005 winning two more fights before retiring permanently.

Overall, Thomas Hearns was 61-5-1, 48 KOs over a nearly 30 year career. He held world titles in every division from Welterweight to Light Heavyweight and was also competitive at Cruiserweight. The Hitman was one of the hardest pure punchers in boxing history, as evidenced by his crushing knockouts of Cuevas and Duran. At the same time, he was an outstanding boxer who was able to outpoint hall of fame stylists such as Benitez and Hill. Hearns also won the majority of the 26 rounds he boxed with the great Sugar Ray Leonard and gave Marvelous Marvin Hagler his toughest test as champion to that point in his career.

A prime Hitman would obliterate any Welterweight or Jr. Middleweight that’s come along over the past 25 years. He would also be a handful for any Welterweight, Jr. Middleweight or Middleweight in boxing history. Thomas Hearns is among the most underrated fighters in boxing history. In my view, he ranks among the top 5 Welterweights of all-time. The Hitman is a true boxing legend and one of the best we’ve ever seen in the sport.

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