‘He is here in spirit’: Brockton unveils statue honoring boxing champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler

BROCKTON, Mass. — City officials on Thursday unveiled a $150,000 statue honoring late boxing champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler.

Dozens of people attended the unveiling, which took place at a new park and street bearing Hagler’s name, at the corner of Petronelli Way and Hagler Way in downtown Brockton.

The bronze statue now stands at the former location of the Petronelli Brothers’ Gym, where Hagler, a middleweight whose 1985 defeat of Tommy Hearns capped a dominant career, trained during his boxing career. Hagler died in 2021 at the age of 66.

“I will say one thing about Marvelous Marvin, he never forgot where he came from,” Mayor Robert Sullivan told the crowd. “So today he is not here physically, but he is here in spirit.”

Hagler, who was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1993, went 62-3-2 with 53 knockouts during his boxing career, which spanned from 1973 through 1987. He was the undisputed middleweight champion from 1980 to 1987 and made 12 title defenses.

Hagler also was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1993. He was named the 1980s Fighter of the Decade by Boxing Illustrated. The magazine tapped him as Fighter of the Year twice.

“He put Brockton back on the map,” said state Sen. Mike Brady, a lifelong Brocktonian.

“We have so many great memories of watching those fights at the high school and then the Hearns and Hagler fight was the best,” Brady said.

The Rev. Ortez Vandross said the statue “will be a memorial of his life lessons, hard work and dedication.”

Vandross described Hagler as “amazing, astounding, incredible, breathtaking, sensational, remarkable and spectacular.”

“Many knew him for his dazzling smile, charisma, charming personality, intimidating presence and killer instinct in the ring, yet Marvelous Marvin Hagler was a lover of people,” Vandross said. “He was a philanthropist.”

Hagler’s statue is the second erected in Brockton to memorialize a boxing champ from the city.

In 2012, the World Boxing Council gifted a $250,000, 22-foot-tall statue of boxing legend Rocky Marciano to the city. The statue honoring Marciano, the only undefeated heavyweight champion of the world, towers outside of Brockton High School, off Forest Avenue.

Hagler and Marciano, known as the “Brockton Blockbuster,” are the reasons why Brockton is known as the “City of Champions.”

Hagler won the middleweight title by knocking out Alan Minter in 1980. He went on to defeat challengers such as Tommy “Hitman” Hearns, Vito Antuofermo, Mustafa Hamsho, Roberto Duran, Juan Roldan, and John “The Beast” Mugabi.

Brodin Studios sculpted Hagler’s statue, which was funded through a $150,000 state grant secured by state Rep. Gerry Cassidy, D-Brockton, officials said.

Hagler’s third-round knockout victory against Hearns is regarded as one of the best fights of all time. He was a huge box office draw widely credited with helping launch HBO boxing and the pay-per-view fight era.

Hagler’s last fight was in 1987 when Sugar Ray Leonard came out of retirement and won a controversial 12-round split decision for the WBC middleweight title. Hagler retired after Leonard would not give him a rematch.

Born in Newark, New Jersey, Hagler moved to Brockton in 1969, where he trained with Brockton brothers Goody and Pat Petronelli for years during his historic boxing career.

He legally changed his name in 1982 to Marvelous Marvin Hagler. After retiring from boxing in 1987, Hagler became an actor in Italy.

Hagler “is a true embodiment of the spirit of Brockton, demonstrating his toughness, perseverance, community and dedication,” Vandross said.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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