Years later, Roberto Duran opens up on the truth behind the " No Mas" statement for which he's mostly remembered.
Roberto Duran: “My manager called me, I was just at home watching TV, and he said he had got me a fight with the new superstar from America. He told me l'd be fighting the best America had to offer - a fighter that was called The King of New York. I wanted to be The King of New York, and after I beat Sugar Ray Leonard I was..
“The fans went crazy after that win, I was partying for a long, long time after that win.
“The second fight, I was up to around 196 pounds and my manager said I had to go back to Panama right now, that the second fight was signed. I said, 'are you crazy!’ - I knew I couldn't fight again so soon. But I had a month to lose all that weight. I starved myself, I pushed myself so hard. In sparring, I felt each punch from my sparring partners, they felt like rocks. I was ill and I felt bad. I crawled to the weighing scale. I then had a cup of coffee and some water and I felt sick.
“Later I saw members from Leonard's team loosening the ropes in the ring, in the corners. In the fight, when I had Leonard in the corner, he was able to get away from my punches. There were a lot of shady things in that fight. Also, I never said the words, 'No Mas. That was made up by American commentator Howard Cosell. He didn't like me very much, because I never gave him many interviews so he made that up. I waved my arms in the air, yes, but I never said anything. How could Cosell have heard me anyway, from all the way across the ring where he was.
“I had really bad stomach cramps and I thought I would lose the fight, then get the third fight and make sure I was in top shape to kick a**.”
Roberto Duran’s story isn’t just about the glory of victory, it’s about the toll of sacrifice and the truth behind the headlines. In his own words, he didn’t walk away from Leonard with shame, but with a battered body and a misquoted legacy. The world remembers “No Mas,” but Durán remembers pain, pressure, and the price of stepping in the ring when he wasn’t ready. His voice reminds us, history is often written by those with the loudest microphone, not always by those who lived
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