I don't know if he was a frontrunner. He simply wore down as fights progressed, no doubt because what were, in the early rounds, physical advantages became themselves disadvantages over the course of the fight. Once he was hurt and draining, he had no way to really re-establish himself. It wasn't psychological, it was physical. He simply was the sort of guy who once badly hurt remained badly hurt in a sense. His attempt to outbox Leonard down the stretch against the "Conventional" wisdom- and his collapse when it came- were examples of this.
Ray literally had to beat Hearns down into the ropes. Hearns had been running on empty and had actually reverted to outboxing Leonard to get through. Not really front-runnerish behaviour. And in the 3rd round- with the fight, IMHO, beyond him- he was still fighting Hagler, hard. And that's with the broken hand and the massaged legs. He always tried to get up too. So, no, no frontrunner. Just a guy who wore down on account of being willowy.
Nah. I think a front runner is somebody like Chapo Rosario or Kostya Tszyu. Not saying they didn’t have heart, but there’s levels. Hearns had every bit the heart and determination one could have, but didn’t have the physical durability of some of his counter parts.
Nah... Hearns Doesn't Beat a Tough, Gritty, Formidable Middleweight Like Roldan, THE WAY He Beat Roldan, if He was a "Front Runner"... Hearns was HURT in 3 of the 4 Rounds, FATIGUED, SPAGHETTI LEGGED @ Times, Yet Still Knocked Roldan the Fuck Out in the End...Tommy Hearns was VULNERABLE for Sure, But Definitely NOT a "Front Runner".... REED
