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Marvin Hagler, right, of Brockton Mass., lands a right to Willis Warren of Corpus Christi, Texas, in their 10-round bout, Nov. 11, 1978 at Boston Garden. Hagler won the fight on a seventh-round technical knockout to stay in contention for a middleweight title fight. (AP Photo/Paul Benoit) -
Retired American professional boxer Marvin Hagler gestures before the WBA middleweight title fight between Gennady Golovkin of Kazakhstan and Nobuhiro Ishida of Japan, Saturday March 30, 2013, in Monaco. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau) -
Boxing legend Marvin Hagler gestures as he arrives with his wife Kay for the 2019 Laureus World Sports Awards, Monday, Feb. 18, 2019. (AP Photo/Claude Paris)
Marvin Hagler, the middleweight boxing great whose title reign and career ended with a split-decision loss to “Sugar” Ray Leonard in 1987, died Saturday. He was 66.
Wife Kay G. Hagler confirmed the death on Facebook on the verified Marvelous Marvin Hagler Fan Club page.
“I am sorry to make a very sad announcement,” she wrote. “Today unfortunately my beloved husband Marvelous Marvin passed away unexpectedly at his home here in New Hampshire. Our family requests that you respect our privacy during this difficult time.”
Hagler was 62-3-2 with 52 knockouts from 1973 to 1987. He was the undisputed middleweight champion from 1980 to his loss to Leonard at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on April 6, 1987.
The fierce left-hander had two of his biggest victories at Caesars Palace, unanimously outpointing Roberto Duran in 1983 and knocking out Thomas Hearns in the third round in 1985.
Hagler was born in Newark, New Jersey, and moved with his family to Brockton, Massachusetts, in the late 1960s. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1983.