The Marvin Hagler-Thomas Hearns superfight was dubbed "The War" and more than lived up to its lofty billing.

The two had circled each other since 1982, when Hearns twice pulled out due to hand injuries.

The two factions collided at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas on April 15, 1985, for Hagler's Ring/undisputed middleweight throne. The wait proved to be well worth it.

What went down was one for the ages, and labelled by The Ring, "The most electrifying eight minutes ever."

From the first bell both men engaged in a high impact shootout that saw both hurt and battered before Hearns succumbed midway through the third-round.

"With Tommy Hearns, finally they gave me what I'm looking for," Hagler told The Ring during a Best I Faced several years ago. "I knew it was going to be that kind of fight because [during] the buildup to the fight, he didn't like me, I didn't like him."

"That was one of the best fights in history, but it wasn't my best fight," Hearns said. "I'm a winner and I know how to win. I love to win and I wanted to win that fight. It bothers me; it still bothers me today. I still think about it and wish I could do it over again.

"He was the better man that night. He was the better man because he withstood all I put on him. "I hit him with everything but the kitchen sink. He continued and kept coming forward. I moved him but he just kept coming forward. He took it with no problems."

Hagler was later named by The Ring co-fighter of the year with Donald Curry, the contest won Fight of The Year and the first round was Round of the Year.

Here 12 former and current middleweight titleholders shared their thoughts and memories of the carnage that ensued.

"I'd just come out of the Army; I can't remember where I watched it. That was a tremendous fight. What a three-rounder! Marvin Hagler was my hero. I wanted to be so much like Marvin. I didn't know whether to bow, curtsy or what when I met Marvin Hagler.

"Hearns wobbled him about twice, you might not see it. It was an out and out fight! Tommy Hearns was a good fighter but if you put pressure on him, he can't handle it and that's what Marvin Hagler had to do. Tommy Hearns with that razor sharp jab and left hook, Tommy had some good hands. [Hagler] had to go in there all guns blazing and that's what he's done, he took it to Hearns and he knew for a fact he was going to catch up with him. At the end of the second round, he saw it coming, Tommy was really wobbly on his feet a couple of times and Hagler was absolutely relentless. No way could he stand off and try to box Tommy Hearns, Tommy Hearns would have picked him off. Tommy Hearns was a good, good boxer, Hagler had to come at him 100 percent. After he was cut, he was throwing punch after punch and making Hearns fight his fight.

"One of the best [fights], there's so many good fights but the best three-round fight ever. I did that with Gerald McClellan, that was my fight, same fight Hagler-Hearns, that's what me and Gerald McClellan done. It was either him or me and it was the same thing with Hagler-Hearns. We both had that will to win, it was like it was a fight we both could not lose.

"I never watched [Sugar Ray Robinson or Carlos Monzon] they were before my time. Oh, for me 100 percent [Hagler was one of the best middleweights ever]. I'd have loved to have got in the ring with him just to say I had the privilege of getting in the ring with him.

"Sugar Ray Leonard that was just before I fought Iran Barkley. if I didn't destroy Barkley the way I did, I could have been fighting been fight Sugar Ray for $6 million dollars and that was from Bob Arum because he used to promote me. We're not talking about Sugar Ray in his prime, let's get that straight. They're living legends, Marvin Hagler, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran and Tommy Hearns, we followed them, me [Chris] Eubank, [Michael] Watson etc. We had to step up to follow them guys."

"When I think of that fight, I think of an all-out war. You've got rock and a grenade launcher, and that rock was able to take the grenade, and the grenade launcher wasn't able to take the rock. It was a very good fight. A very hard-fought fight both guys came out to win and I thought Tommy took the wrong approach, but he knew his only chance was to get Marvin out of there early or he knew he couldn't endure Marvin for 12-rounds. He was smart trying to get Marvin out, it just didn't work.

"[Hearns] didn't have the legs Sugar Ray had to stay away [Hagler] for 12-rounds. It was a helluva fight by both fighters. One of the most epic fights you're ever going to see because both guys came out and left it all out there. That's a fight the world will never forget because it was two top guys.

"In the first round you realized Hagler could take Hearns punch and that was the biggest thing, if Hagler could take Hearns punch it was over for Hearns because Hagler was definitely going to out endure Hearns. Hearns hit him as hard as he could, so hard, I think he broke his own hand and Marvin took it [laughs] that was pretty much the fight there.

"I can't say it's the greatest fight ever, but it was one of the most action-packed fights ever.

"The best middleweight ever, I'd say is Sugar Ray Robinson, I know he started at welterweight, but he was a middleweight too. I still think he's the best outside Roy Jones Jr. but that's me, I can't say myself, I guess.

"It was an extraordinary fight, a fight that I loved, the world enjoyed and if you were ever going to pay for a fight that's the kind of fight you want to pay because you didn't get disappointed in no second of that fight. The only way you got disappointed is if you were a Tommy Hearns fan."

"Hagler done what he had to do, he done exactly the right thing and won. I was in camp from around that time onwards but when I say camp, we were in the same gym but then Marvin would go to camp in P Town which was off the coast of Cape Cod but the gym was in Brockton, Mass., when Marvin went to camp he went away on his own.

"I didn't know Marvin then; it was early days. It was really when Marvin fought Leonard that I spent more time in the gym with him. I can't believe it was 40 years ago.

"The whole way Marvin fought and knowing Marvin's style, Goodie and Pat planned the perfect fight and with Marvin's ability and Marvin's physical strengths it was the only way for Marvin to fight him and that's exactly what he was supposed to do and got the result that was anticipated in our camp.

"That fight was never going to be stopped because Goody Petronelli was one of the greatest cutmen of all-time. Goodie Petronelli served in the Navy, he was a medic in the Navy, Goodie told me stories about a man's leg being amputated and being handed to him during an operation, a little cut on Marvin's head was never going to be a problem for Goodie, believe me. He done my cuts as well. What happened with the cut, he got cut on the forehead above the nose. The fight was never going to go the distance because Marvin was going to use his power and strength because we all knew if you jumped on Hearns and put him under pressure that he wasn't the strongest middleweight. He was about 6-foot-1/ 2 and very lean and lacked the strength, Marvin was shorter stature, broader, more powerful and Marvin knew to jump on him and drag him into a brawl was the way to beat him, no other way to beat him and it was a case of having to trade and Marvin was happy to trade with Hearns because he knew he could take a shot and he knew Hearns couldn't and that was the difference.

"I definitely think it's one of the greatest fights. It was the biggest at the time, two great fighters and the bell rang and there was action. There was more action in those three-rounds than I've seen in world titles that went 12-rounds and had rematches. And there was more drama and story because in the three-rounds it went from Marvin being cut and caught to Hearns being stopped in the space of nine-minutes. It was action packed. It was a great fight and that's why 40-years on we're still talking about it. How many great fighters have fought since then and yet we're going to sit and talk about this one and we'd sit and watch it again because it was a short fight people will enjoy it; they don't have to sit and watch it for 45 minutes.

"Marvin done exactly what I'd have done in that situation. Get out there and go for him. Physically Marvin was stronger, Hearns one punch had more power than Marvin but Marvin had combination power, he'd hit you with three or four punches and put you over. The best thing he could do was jump on him, assault him and mug him. He had a very good chin but don't kid yourself, he was hurt but he made the decision to keep going and that's the difference. Hearns was using short uppercut, like a half uppercut, half hook punch he had. He hit Marvin hard but you'd have to knock him out cold, he wouldn't stop, he made a decision, this is how it's going to go and that's how it went.

"What's the point having a rematch, Marvin smashed him in three-rounds. There was no argument. What's a rematch going to be a repeat again. Hearns not going to hit any harder and Marvin's going to be even more confident and Hearns is going to be less confident because he's been knocked out by him."

"The greatest middleweight of all-time was Sugar Ray Robinson. The greatest fighter of all-time. Oh, Marvin was one of the greatest middleweights of all-time, definitely top 5, probably the top 3."

"That fight, to me, was the best, and up to now in 2025, the best three round action packed from beginning to the end fight in history. The best two or three fights in history and I put it up there at No. 1. Those three rounds did a lot and took from one fighter and did a lot for the next. It made it official that in that time and politics in boxing there was no question who was the king in that division and the top of boxing in that era. Tommy Hearns was never really the same again. This is a fight that people, not just boxing experts, will remember this fight. There's a lot of great fights in the last 40 years but the casual boxing fan will not unfortunately not remember those fights but they will remember this one.

"Marvin was the greatest middleweight ever because of the dominance of one division. By staying at 160, retired at 160, remembered at 160 and the legacy behind that. The receipts of this era and the receipts of the past of history.

"He was my idol, he was somebody I followed when I was incarcerated, someone that I learned by reading and watching certain clippings of how he stayed ready and never had to actually get ready. Marvin Hagler was someone that I looked at that as a person that always came ready. You beat a guy like that, you beat a guy like Bernard Hopkins, you beat him because you were better and that was your night and that was the only way I was going to be beaten. I never came into the ring unprepared. Marvin was someone who inspired me that you don't have to have all the great attributes to be the greatest or one of the greatest. Marvin Hagler wasn't fast on his feet like the great Sugar Ray Leonard but one thing he did have was great discipline. That's what I injected into my program of thinking and work ethics, behaviour and lifestyle. You never heard of Marvin Hagler staggering out of bars, you never heard of Marvin Hagler bingeing between fights where he gained 30-pounds. What he had was heart, determination and his drive to be great all the time. He's consistent. Marvin Hagler should be a blueprint on how to be basic and still become great."

"Both of those guys were my idols, but Hagler was my No. 1 guy and Hearns was my No. 2 guy and I never really wanted them to fight because I didn't want to see neither one lose.

"I went to the Capital Center in Maryland, if I'm not mistaken where I watched the fight. Oh yeah, [it lived up to the hype] and then some [laughs] that was a war within a war. To me, these guys were such warriors they came to fight.

"Hagler was just a much smarter fighter than Hearns in my opinion. When I look at Hagler's career, Hagler was a brawler but when Hagler had to box, Hagler knew how to box, just like the "Beast" Mugabi fight, he knew he couldn't just bang with the beast until he wore him down. Hearns on the other hand had the same attitude coming into every fight, he's coming in to knock you out or you're going to knock him out. I knew if Hearns fell into the trap of brawling with Hagler he was going to lose.

"Hagler couldn't do it no other way because Hearns would have picked him apart. The game plan the Petronelli's had was brilliant but it wouldn't come without some scars and bruises because Hagler was bleeding in the first round. I don't think they would have stopped that fight because they needed that fight to continue to go on. It wasn't bothering him, so I don't think they would stop it. They might have thrown it out there but as long as [Hagler] was fighting and wasn't getting hit and knocked down, they were going to continue. I think they would have went the whole distance, I don't care how much blood there was they weren't going to stop that fight.

"I think it's still a fighters favorite fight today, it's still motivating, you're moving your body while the fight is happening and you know it happened 40 years ago. You're in the fight with them. You still see things you didn't see 40 years ago. Hagler got hit with a shot and I didn't see that shot before but I saw it the other day.

"They gave their all and made it one of the greatest fights of all-time. I don't belittle the previous champions but I would say Marvelous Marvin Hagler was one of the greatest of his era because he went out of the country to fight, he gave rematches, he showed he really, really desired to win and be the best.

"Hagler vs Hearns is in my opinion the best three round championship fight that I've seen. You don’t see fights like that anymore. Today you rarely see the best versus the best. These guys were both at the height of their careers and they laid it all on the line giving the fans everything they wanted and more. They were both very talented top of their game when they met.

"I’m a bit bias because Hagler was my favorite fighter. He fought an excellent fight; he jumped on Tommy as soon as the bell rang for the first round. His game plan of pressing/attacking and having Hearns fight backing up was the difference in the fight. If Hearns was able to stand his ground and measure Hagler like he did with Duran it would have been a different fight.

"It seemed like everyone had Hearns beating Hagler easy because of the Duran fight, where Hearns destroyed him, and Hagler went the distance with Duran. However, Hagler didn’t give him a chance, he jumped on him from the onset and had him in retreat the entire fight. Hearns had difficulty fighting going backwards. Hagler stayed on him didn’t take a step back, he was cut, bloodied (his face full of blood) but he was relentless.

"Those are the type of fights that make the sport what it is supposed to be. I haven’t seen a fight like that in years because the guys today want to pick and choose who they fight, and you rarely see a fight with the best fighting the best. I’ll tip my hat to Hearns for his accomplishments and what he means to the sport but the Marvelous One is my all-time favorite fighter. He showed me the meaning of hard work, grit, determination and loyalty. He will forever be the fighter that I idolize."

"Hagler-Hearns was a legendary fight that will always be in the boxing history books. What also made this fight special in my eyes was, of course, the press tour. Thomas Hearns was always very, very keen to speak and naturally fuelled this fight. Hagler was more the quieter type, who really concentrated on training and on himself. It was entertainment from the first press conference to the fight.

"Of course, it was the best first round ever and one that will probably be hard to top. I think there will probably never be another first round like that in such an absolute mega fight. And that's why everyone will always remember it. You can also take this first round as an example for yourself as an athlete, how you can go into a fight like this if you really want to win and show it: 'I don't care whether it's the first round or the last round. I'm going to give it my all from the start and I'm going to beat you.' Hagler showed that more than impressively. He gave everything in the first round and never took a step back. In my opinion, Hearns exhausted himself in the first round. You could see that. Then he also went down painfully against Hagler. It was a fight that will have a permanent place in boxing history and one of the best fights you've ever seen.

"Is Hagler the best [middleweight] in history? I think he's definitely one of the top three. Definitely. There was a Sugar Ray Leonard. There was Hagler. Sure, there was Hearns. Roy Jones [Jr.] was also a sensational boxer in his middleweight days. You mustn't forget that Carlos Monzon was also an absolutely exceptional talent. And definitely someone who belongs there. [Bernard] Hopkins of course has his place, but if you ask me for the top three, it's definitely Hagler, Hearns and Monzon."

"Both fighters are legends, and both are very good fighters, two killers, both have good experience. This is one of the best fights in history at middleweight I think it is the best fight. I remember Hagler's defense and attack and Hearns went down.

"This fight is an example to every fighter; every good fighter can learn from this fight. They can learn attack and defense and learn how to take the pain. I think Hagler is the best middleweight ever, why not? I love him."

"The first round, it was all out rock 'em sock 'em. Hearns started out promising, it looked like he was possibly going to knock out Hagler in that first round. Hagler changed it around halfway through the round. I had that a hard round to score; I probably give it to Hagler just because he stole the last minute of the round. It could go down as one of the best rounds in middleweight history. It was a great round.

"The second round and even up to the end of the fight, I don't think it was so much Hearns was really hurt. For their time those guys were great. Hearns was tall but didn't look too athletic. After that first round it was a battle of attrition, it came down to who was in better shape. Tommy Hearns looked exhausted by the end of the first round, second round moving around, his legs were kind of gone. If he had to stop and plant and go the other direction, his legs kind of gave out. That wasn't from getting hit, I think that was from being completely exhausted and I think that was the ending of the fight. He may have been hurt a little, but I think he was completely exhausted, they threw a lot of punches in that first round, then second round they started off a little slower, but it picked up and Hagler put him on the ropes. In that fight Hagler's size actually benefited him, usually the taller guy has the advantage but in that fight, he uses his smaller advantage to get inside and press Hearns up against the ropes and not let him off and not let him box.

"Every cut is different it could have been going down where it wasn't going in his eye. I'm sure the doctor would have come in and seen. I was thinking about that watching, "He's still punching and it looks like he knows where he's at." because if you get the blood going into the eye, you really are blinded at least in one eye.

"He's on Mount Rushmore, he's an icon. Most of the guys came up in weight, Duran came up at lightweight, Hearns started off at junior welterweight, Leonard was a welterweight. I'm not crazy for it we go by factual numbers and not opinions.

"It's a matter of sparring three extra rounds, that all it is. People always try to use the, "He fought 15-rounds." GGG is hurting him, Canelo with the boxing, I don't think Hagler is strong enough, people will think I'm crazy but boxing evolved, they close the gap quicker, they counter, they parry. Not knocking them but I don't think people give athletes today enough credit. Even when I was fighting people were saying, 'They don't fight like they used to.' 15-years later they show highlights of my Jermain Taylor fight and the comment section is, 'This is when they used to box.' It's a generation thing. In all reality, as a boxing coach and strength and conditioning guy, you've got to stay up to date. The sports are evolving, these athletes are getting fast, bigger and more athletic.

"I'd definitely put Hagler because of his career and what he was able to do top 5, I could say that and think he earned that."

"I remember when that fight took place at my house. We were all gathered together, several of my uncles, cousins, and friends. It felt like a football match, one of those big, important ones. At my house, high-quality, top-level boxing was experienced like a celebration. And that particular fight was one of those memorable ones. The whole family was excited; a lot of people gathered in front of the TV. It was an unforgettable moment.

"In the middleweight category. I don’t know if it was the best fight in history, but I’m sure of one thing, it was the most spectacular, above all the others.

"Analyzing it today, I understand that it had exquisite technical richness from both boxers. Hagler’s tactical change was the most remarkable. Absolutely everyone expected to see Marvin Hagler with a conservative style in the fight, and it was the complete opposite. From Tommy Hearns, everyone expected what he always offered, which was spectacular action in each of his fights, sticking to his personal motto, which was, "Let’s finish this now."

"For Tommy Hearns, fights had to end before the last bell and it did, but to the surprise of practically everyone, Hagler took control and seized the action in an incredible, surprising, and spectacular way.

"Surely, having fought injured, conditioned Tommy Hearns, it’s something logical, and I’m sure that if he had both hands in good condition, the fight could have taken a different course but I still understand that Hagler had a better fight strategy, a better tactical approach, and frankly, it feels, it feels really bad, it feels horrible when you fight injured. I've had several fractures in different fights, and it’s very hard to bear because you can't focus or concentrate on tactical and strategic plans, but rather on taking care of the injured part.

"From my point of view, and being Argentine, I regret saying this, even though I'm a fan of Marvin Hagler, but I don’t think he was the greatest middleweight of all time. The best was me, nah, nah, just kidding, the best was Carlos Monzón, without a doubt, and right behind him, Marvin Hagler, easily."

"This fight is very poignant to me, if I'm honest. I was three when the fight happened but I probably watched the three rounds of action more times than most. I used to watch this on the day of my fights to get revved up. I remember watching this [fight] in Atlantic City moments before I fought Daniel Geale to win the [IBF] world title.

"Round 1 is arguably the greatest round of all-time. It's a guy stepping up to middleweight, Thomas Hearns, I think he came into that fight with a record of 40 wins and 1 loss. He's stepping up to face the middleweight king and you think what Hearns does have in abundance - even stepping up a weight - he was tall, he was rangy, quick hands, quick feet. You would assume, albeit he's a huge puncher, that he would box smart and stay out of trouble, certainly early on but that wasn't the case. It was absolute fireworks! It's what dreams are made off as a boxing fan. The boxing God's delivered on this one.

"How mad [to think] a fighters [Thomas Hearns] stock rose in a three-round defeat. In my opinion, Thomas Hearns stepping up to middleweight, showing the size of his man-parts by mixing fire with fire, with the middleweight beast Marvelous Marvin Hagler, his stock certainly rose in defeat. It was superhuman from both, it was an iconic three-rounds from two of the greatest to ever grace the boxing ring.

"It's not the best fight ever but it's the best three-rounds of action I've ever seen. I've watched it so many times. It gets better and better every time.

"Carlos Monzon would argue, I think he was the held the undisputed middleweight crown, was an absolute monster but you'd have to put Marvin Hagler right up there.

"I had a very special moment. I remember going to a charity show a few years back before Marvin Hagler passed away and I sat down and I couldn't believe it the name tag next to me was Marvin Hagler, I couldn't believe it. I told him I had watched that three-round probably more than I have ever seen any other piece of boxing in my life."

"I was a big fan of Hagler and Hearns was an exceptional fighter and when the fight came up it was a war. What a first round! It was probably the roughest first rounds in middleweight history [laughs.] What a brutal fight, two guys hitting each other. It shows the strength of the top fighters at middleweight. It was a fight I saw a long time ago and it definitely hit me when I saw that fight. These guys are two warriors - very inspiring! It's a three-round war, a three round street fight. Two devastating fighters. What a fan-friendly show it was, you can click on it now [on the internet] and be as entertained now as the first time I watched it, it's such a brutal, entertaining, aggressive and keeps you on the edge of your seat kind of fight. That kind of fight never dies with time, you can watch it a 100-years from now and still be as amazed as when they first fought.

"That's the type of fighter I was, get straight down to business. I'm not going to compare some of my fights to these two legends but my fight against Curtis Stevens was bad blood and it was first round till the last round, when I knocked him out, I wanted to hurt him from the first punch I threw, in the first second of the first round, until the end. It was all personal and bad blood. Hagler was all business, once he stepped into the ring, he was a murderous puncher, he was a fearless warrior. Hearns style also, tall, long, strong, powerful fighter. Fights like that come very rarely, so to have seen it and watch it now in the replays is inspiring, especially for fighters, who have that kind of style.

"[Hagler] is definitely top five, it's hard to say one in particular because styles make fights but he's definitely up there."