Marvelous: The Marvin Hagler Story

I was just in North Conway, NH this weekend, and by chance happened to be reading this book! Turns out Hagler’s home was 10 minutes from where we were staying so we did a drive by. Lovely street, quiet and private. It’s nice that he loves this area as much as we do. The book was the perfect thing to read on a short, getaway. I have always admired Hagler’s fighting, and watched some of his fights. His presence is electrifying in the ring, and I was always in awe. I don’t know a lot about boxing, but just love to watch it and see the fighters. I was shocked, like so many others, when the judges gave the fight to Leonard. We watched it on TV and we were ripped! And he was ripped off. He was truly the champ.This book is engaging, easy to read, full of information. I learned a lot. The fun thing was to read a chapter (each chapter is pretty much devoted to one fight) and then look up that fight on YouTube and watch it! The photos at the end were excellent. You get some good insight into how Hagler trained and handled himself in the ring.The only thing I question is how did this book get published without controversy. At one point, the author is describing Hagler as warming his hands by a fire in Provincetown, and is quoted a few times, and I wondered how the author could possibly have gotten this quote. There are many sentences like this: Hagler is quoted, or something is described in great detail. But nothing is referenced. When you google the sentences, you are taken right away to the Sports Illustrated archives. So the author saves you time by condensing a lot of articles and compiles them into a great story, but this really borders on plagiarism, and in some cases is plagiarism.Example: from Pat Punam’s article in SI, Jan 26, 1981, “Marvin’s Mystery Guest.” "How did he get to be No. 1?" Hagler wondered aloud... The 28-year-old champion pondered that question before a blazing wood fire at the Provincetown Inn on the frozen tip of Cape Cod, 120 miles from Boston. And from Hughes’s book: “How did he get to be number one?” Hagler wondered aloud before a blazing wood fire at the frozen tip of Cape Cod, 120 miles from Boston. No mention is given to SI, or Putnam. Nothing is referenced in the book.I wonder if he got permission or had some agreement with SI, but it’s a bit jarring. This happens all through the book. That said, it’s still a riveting story, and fighter. Hagler will always be number one in my book!

Too many newspaper accounts and I didnt like the overhyped leonard - Hagler account or the history behind it, trying to make something out of nothing. The careers of both fighters were never linked in any way. The Hagler - Hearns acount was also a bit over done but enjoyhed the Hagler - Finnegan account

Good book on Hagler. Good information on several fights. Learned some more details about his fights with UK middleweights Minter and Sibson. This book is not written by a New England style reporter but neutral UK authors. One feels like you can feel the nuances of Hagler's personality. The Petronelli Brothers come across as loyal, small town, naive, and weak when it comes to business dealings.

Great in depth look at a great boxer and a solitary figure by choice to get the most edge for his bout. Enjoyed thoroughly and completed the reading in 3 nights.

Just like the fighter himself, this book is marvelous! Marvin was my favorite growing up and this book reinforced the feeling. Great champion, great book.

This is a good, solid biography of my favorite boxer of all time. Hagler is a fighter whose stature grows with time. You look back on his career, on the tough road he had to the title, on the honest way he fought. The man was probably the last of his kind. As others have noted, Hagler himself does not participate (maybe we will see an autobiography some day) but the book is well sourced and well written. I read it in a few hours.

Most info is from newspaper or secondary sources. Story is unimaginative but complete. Not a lot about how Marvelous Marvin is doing right now in Italy.

Good read brings out the real Marvin to those unfamiliar with his dogged will. Over 50 fights be a Championship shot, avoided, under paid left him with contempt and bile for Pretty boys and Superstars.

This is a must read book for both boxing and Hagler fans. I just couldn't put it down once I started reading it. Hagler was a tough, mean, no nonsense, serious fighter in a golden era of fighters. He was the best of them all (and I include 'Sugar' Ray Leonard in that) in my opinion.What this book portrays is a man who had to suffer so much injustice, from the money he was earning to the way he was being treated by the boxing world governing bodies but he used it to feed his monster, to push him on and to beat pretty much everything that was put in his path. Truly remarkable and no wonder he was surly, aggressive and had what some would consider a coarse attitude. But the reality was, he was the best middleweight fighter of a golden era, a truly hard man, who, if not boxing, could have easily been a successful businessman or an organised crime boss. And for me personally, he is a true working class hero, someone who came from modest roots, who worked bloody hard, suffered extreme injustices, got proportionally little recognition for his achievements, but still continued grafting and became the best he could be, the middleweight champion of the world and one of, if not THE, best boxer ever. A true hero!

I ordered this book from Amazon even before it was published & received it only a few days after publication (I was well pleased with Amazon's service). Well, what a fabulous book concerning in my view, the greatest boxer to ever hold the 160 lb world title. I know a fair bit about Marv's career (I saw the fights with Hearns & Mugabe live on t.v. way back in the 1980s), & I have seen (& read about) Marv's world title winning fight & all 12 of his title defences.However, what I loved about this book is the info regarding Marvin's pre world title career. I loved the chapter regarding how Hagler met up with his famous managers, the Petronelli brothers. There is some good info on his early professional career. I also loved the chapter regarding a time in Marv's life when he took on the best that the legendary fighting city of Philadelphia had to offer - yeah I'm talking about Hagler's fights with "Bad" Bennie Briscoe, Willie "The Worm" Monroe, Bobby "Boogaloo" Watts & Eugene "Cyclone" Hart. These fights & these fighters were, in some respects, tougher/harder than the ones Hagler faced as World Middleweight Champion (& this was a time when Hagler was perhaps at his very best). In time, Hagler cut down each of these formidable Philly middleweights, but I like the fact that the authors do not try to smooth over Hagler's legitimate loss to Willie Monroe (Monroe, unlike Watts, did beat Hagler). Hagler was beaten badly (& beaten up) by Monroe in the first fight & the authors present an accurate account of this fight. It showed that Hagler was human, just like every fighter since the beginning of time & that Marv could be beaten by using clever movement & subtle boxing. It was the same style of boxer, in the form of Duran & Sugar Ray Leonard (both of whom possessed very good movement, quick hands & were "clever" boxers) that went on to give Hagler so much trouble later on his career.It is an ACCURATE & UNBIASED book in my estimation - the authors have even given Hagler's real height in bare feet, which is great, as I have incorrectly seen him quoted as being as tall as 5 ft 9 & even 5 ft 9.5 inches, which of course is pure fantasy as (apart from Duran & a few others) several of Hagler's opponents towered him! A great book - I advise any casual or specialist fan to buy it!

Any boxing fan who watched the career and fights of MH will enjoy this book. It takes you through all of MH championship fights chapter by chapter and provide a deepi nsight into the pysche and discipline of one the greatest boxers of all time

I liked this book. Not too many quotes from the man himself but many explanations of why he was and who he was. At last an explanation of why he was happy to give SRL so many advantages in their bout. Another excellent book about the protagionists in the era ( IMHO) of the best middleweight-ish boxers.

A facinating, insightful & enjoyable book about an extraordinary athlete unappreciated in his time. Arguably Haglers legacy is not fully appreciated - his durability to remain at the pinnacle of one of the worlds toughest professions, for so long at a time of such intense competition - is worthy of acclaim - the book does justice to his story and is a balanced account. It tells us much about the man, his ruthless intensity, his beliefs ,the demons he faced (both in and out of the ring) - and importantly what kept in him the game for so long. For the boxing fan - a must , for the sports fan - a facinating tale, and for those driven just to learn about how an individual can achieve and sustain success for so long - an object lesson. Congratulations to Messrs Hughes.