Sugar Ray Leonard, who was criticized for boxing instead of brawling against Roberto Duran, met the media Friday behind dark glasses hiding cuts that required 60 stitches.
"I looked in the mirror this morning and thought it's nothing makeup won't help," Leonard said.While he was marked like a loser, Leonard was an easy points winner over Duran Thursday night.
"This fight was for me," Leonard, 33, said. "I feel good about my performance, about the way things went."
The fans, however, wanted a repeat of the first Leonard-Duran fight when the two went toe-to-toe for 15 rounds, with Duran winning a close but unanimous decision in 1980 at Montreal.
What they got was a repeat of the New Orleans fight nine years ago, but with a different ending. On that night, Duran quit in frustration. The Panamanian, 38, was equally frustrated Thursday night, but he plodded on to the final bell.
When Leonard fought inside, he outpunched Duran, rocking him several times in the late rounds. He also got cut up. Duran was the cause of the wounds. The crowd was the source.
"I got these cuts when I went inside to accommodate the public's demand (for action)," Leonard said.
He went to the hospital for 30 stitches in the right eyebrow, 20 in the left eyelid and 10 in his lower lip.
Leonard wasn't sure when he was cut over the right eye. That cut, despite needing the most stitches, was not as noticeable as the other two.
"Give Eddie credit for that," said Mike Trainer, Leonard's attorney, referring to cut man Eddie Aliano.
The fact that the cuts did not alter the outcome underscores the careful preparations the Leonard camp made for the fight.
Aliano told Trainer about a prescription medication called Alvaline used to treat cuts. The medication is legal for fights in Nevada, but it has not been approved by the World Boxing Council, which sanctioned the super middleweight title fight.
Trainer got WBC approval to use the medication.
The Leonard camp also was prepared for chilly weather for the outdoor fight at the Mirage.
Leonard wore a karate-style suit into the ring and did not remove it until shortly before the opening bell. He also was wrapped in a blanket between rounds.
Trainer even asked the Nevada State Athletic Commission if Leonard could fight in ski pants. He was told he could wear them under his boxing trunks.
"I thought it would be a fashion statement," Trainer joked, "but he nixed that."
Leonard made a prepared statement in the ring.
He admitted that he wanted to put Duran in a position of quitting as he did at New Orleans.