Although Tommy Hearns at 6 1"towered over the 5 8" Hagler. Hagler looked the more solid and natural middleweight. This was the key point in the fight, and hagler knew it. Thats why he dispensed with any scouting reorts and charged after Hearns from the opening bell like a bull in a china shop. He got close to hearns to nulify Hearns height and reach advantage, and turned what could have ended up a chess match between two talented boxers, into a street fight. It was a gamble in some ways and when hearns stunned hagler with a right in the first round, it was a rare occasion when u could actually see Hagler hurt, but he got through that and began to pummel hearns with some thudding punches before the end of the round. hearns probably felt those punches down to his boots, and in his first outing as a middleweight, he just simply couldnt absorb them. His pencil thin legs were wobbly towards the end of the second round and it was only a matter of time before Haglers concentrated brutality paid of. It reminded me of a giraffe fighting a rhino. pedro

This is the greatest short (3 round) fight ever. Hagler, cut and bloody after a terrific assault by the Cobra in the first, comes out in the second like a fierce animal gone berserk. This is probably the most savage eight minutes of boxing on record.

Here's the first round and half of the second

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHqEUX2Vw6k&feature= related

Here's the rest of it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJLmjsnD09w&feature= related

Simply the greatest three rounds in boxing history.

Hagler is one of the most underrated fighters of all time. If Hearns hadn't broke his hand this fight wouldn't have ended any differently. I have a lot of respect for Hearns stepping up in class and slugging it out with the bigger man but when you have great fighters in each class it is almost impossible to beat the bigger guy. That is of course unless you are a "Celebrity" like Leonard who in my opinion never beat Marvin. This was my second favorite fight of all time. (My favorite was
Foreman-Lyle.) My hat is off to both fighters.

The only fight or fights to come to mind which can rate with this was the classic George Foreman fighting 3 guys in a row, after losing to Ali, and trying to click his heels after the fights and almost falling down. If anyone can find this on the web anywhere give it a look. It was truly bizarre.

Bad arse from round 1 to round 3. Would have been the best money ever spent by ringside viewers. T his was and is the mother of all brawls.

I went to see this fight on closed circuit in Toledo, OH. I was a Hearns fan and a great friend of mine was a Hagler fan. We sat/squirmed, watched, yelled, and smacked each other all through it. After it was over we drove back to school in disbelief of the incredible fight we'd just witnessed. Great memories-great fight!

Personally, i believe the outcome would have been different had Hearns not broken his hand. Either way, best 3 rounds of boxing ever.

"I don't have nothing against Tommy Hearns...I just don't like him." Those were the words of Hagler at the weigh-in. No boxing whatsoever...this was a back alley throwdown. When it looked like the fight was gonna be stopped because of Hagler's huge cut, he took it to another level, and toppled Hearns like a tree, all while Hearns was wearing a smile.  May have been a different outcome if Hearns had any kind of a chin, and if he didn't break his hand on Hagler's dome.

THE FIGHT - period!

Best 3 round fight ever!

Why are fights always better when the boxers really, truly dislike each other? We all know what happened but I'll never forget that look on Hearn's face (smiling almost) at the end of the fight as he inexplicably dropped his guard and strolled away letting Hagler finish him off

Hagler v. Hearns was a not a boxing match. It was a street fight with rules. Round 1 is perhaps one of the greatest rounds of all time.

This was 15 rounds crammed into three. It was indeed a slugfest but both men had a strategy -so it wasn't mindless mayhem. Hagler later admitted that he knew that Hearns was faster, younger, had a longer reach, was probably a better boxer, and had a supernatural right hand. Hagler's game, therefore was to get inside and break Hearns down by using his superior physical strength. Hagler had to drive into the Katrina-like storm of Hearns's VICIOUS shots in order to have any chance. Hagler's strategy was well-thought out and exceedingly brave. The X-factor was whether his chin could take the Hearn's Right... Hearns believed that he could penetrate even the granite-chin of Hagler because he had just accomplished the unthinkable: He had just knocked out the legendary Duran, who himself had a granite-chin --and was never again ko'd before or since in over 100 bouts. Watch the fight and you will see why and where Hagler beat Hearns. In the first round, Hearns landed the right and you could feel the thunder bounce of the Hagler dome. Hagler grabbed Hearns to shake it off and you could almost hear him say holy sh*t --but the chin held. The second round comes and Al Bernstein says: I can't believe it --Hagler is now WALKING THROUGH Hearn's right hand!! That's it right there. And Hearns broke his hand on Hagler's head. The government should make a holiday commemorating this fight.

Hagler was the hardest fighter ever. When the ref stopped the fight to ask Hagler if he could still see after being cut he says I'm still hitting him are'nt I? Hearns may have won though if he had'nt broken his hand

I've seen the footage and read the articles. In my opinion, as many others, I don't ever think there has been a more brutal fight than Hagler/ Hearns. It was the sweet science at it's most simple state, more like a streetfight than a world title boxing fight. This was much better than the Leonard/ Hagler debacle, in which, with all due respect to Leonard, Hagler was robbed. The best 8 minutes of boxing, period.

Explosive, exciting 3 round war!!!!!

While it lasted, this was a very good war that wouldn't be rated this high if it went on much longer because Hagler would've and should've been stopped on cuts.The fight was more about Hearns giving it away-as he did in the first Leonard fight with defensive weaknesses-rather than about Hagler winning.

This fight was what it's all about.It had more intensity per round than any in my lifetime,and Hagler fought like a true hero against a formidable opponent.This is the kind of real action sadly missing today.

Probably the only 3 round fight in history where nobody felt ripped off. That says it all.

The first round was the greatest bit of boxing I have ever seen.I do not know how both fighters were still standing after the 1st.Hearns had an awesome punch,but Hagler proved he had the chin and the heart to overcome.

One of the most intense fights i've ever seen ! Considered a classic fight by most boxing fans.

Good fight, but not the best in the division.

One of the most unbeleivable, unforgettable fights in boxing history. Short, but oh so sweet. Why, oh why didn't he do this with Leonard???

One of the BEST Fights I have ever seen. I will never forget it. I was at a frat party with a beer in my hand watching this street fight. Pound for pound one of the greatest battles of all time. Anyone know how I can get this on VHS or DVD?

The Greatest fight of all time, it was short but at that pace, had it lasted longer it wouldn't have been so 'pure'! A killer.

Forget skill and tactics in this fight,it was a total brawl - boxing at its fiercest finest.It only lasted 3 rounds but it was the most eventful 3 rounds in boxing history. I would rather every fight was short if they would be as exciting as this,rather than the majority of todays fights with both boxers afraid to give an inch.

Great fight but it was only 3 rounds.

OH, man. 8 Minutes of Hell it was like watching part of a bar brawl in the ring. Unbelievable. I have it on VHS and I show it to my buddies who hate boxing. POOF! Instant converts.

If this fight had any flaw, it was the fact it did not last any longer than it did. But if it did, it is possible we would today be talking about how the Hagler vs. Hearns fight ended in the violent death of one of these great fighters. Simply the greatest three rounds ever fought, Hagler was the menacing champion who would not go down- and Hearns the fighter who was all-too brave for his own good. But what they did in those few minutes brought boxing great prominence- if for a brief time. And it cemented the legends of both men.

THE greatest fight of all time. The best 3 rounds you will ever see.

One of the best fights in the history of boxing... only second to the the great Ali fights of the 70's. It showed the skill, brutality, determination and heart of both fighters... Undoutably the greatest Middleweight fight of all time.

the most exciting and vicious fight in history. each man taking the others best shots and coming back with some of his own. hagler showed he had a steel chin, endless stamina, and enuff power to get the job done. hearns showed that he still had enuff power to stagger hagler and the heart to go on fighting until his legs gave out. im glad hagler won (all due respect to mr. hearns).

this fight was a classic battle!

the only fight in my life that had me perspiring after 1 round like I was in the ring! unbelievable action fight..greatest short fight in history!

Incredible ferocity shown by both men with the Marvellous One coming out on top. FANTASTIC.