Sugar Sure Is Sweet

"I looked at them like they were crazy," Arum said.

In a charade designed to extract the most money possible from ABC, Arum negotiated with that network while making it appear that he also was trying to do business with NBC and CBS . "I knew that NBC and CBS were not going to come up with what I needed," Arum says. "They were hot for the fight, but not at this money. ABC didn't want to lose this fight; it had built up Leonard ." Arum wanted to avoid any substantive discussions with NBC and CBS for fear they would drop out. "I had to give the impression there was fierce competition," he says.

The charade had gone on for two months when Arum finally accepted ABC's offer: $1.9 million. He then sold the fight to Caesars Palace for $500,000. And he got $150,000 for the foreign rights. That made $2.55 million in revenues, against $2.2 million in purses. After expenses, Arum stands to make between $250,000 and $300,000.

So Ollie Dunlap bought two pairs of boxing gloves for $45 and started a boxing team in Palmer Park. And Dave Jacobs decided to pitch in. And Ray Leonard wandered into the center one day and started to train. And he won the gold medal in the Olympics. And he turned pro and climbed for three more years. And on Nov. 30 he faces Wilfredo Benitez in Las Vegas . If he wins, of course, another journey will have begun.