CAESARS SUPERDOME (FORMERLY LOUISIANA SUPERDOME AND MERCEDES-BENZ SUPERDOME)

Caesars Superdome (originally Louisiana Superdome and formerly Mercedes-Benz Superdome), commonly known as the Superdome, is a domed multi-purpose stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, in the Southern United States. It has served as the home venue of the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL) since its opening in 1975. On October 14, 1975, the Dome hosted Muhammad Ali Appreciation Day. The Muhammad Temple of Islam 46 in New Orleans organized the activities, with Ali's appearance as the day's highlight. Speakers included Dr. Na'im Akbar, Wallace D. Muhammad and Louis Farrakhan.[83] The Superdome hosted the September 15, 1978 fight some called the Ali rematch where Muhammad Ali won the world Heavyweight title for the third time by beating Leon Spinks in front of a crowd of 65,000. It was Ali's last professional win. Leonard–Durán II, also known as the No Más Fight, took place on November 25, 1980, at the Louisiana Superdome. In the match, Sugar Ray Leonard defeated Roberto Durán to regain the WBC Welterweight Championship. The match gained its famous appellation in the end of the eighth round when Durán turned away from Leonard, towards the referee and quit by saying "No más" (Spanish for "No more"). On December 3, 1982, the Superdome hosted the Carnival of Champions. In the first of two co-main events, Wilfredo Gómez of Puerto Rico would defend his WBC world Jr Featherweight championship against WBC's world Bantamweight champion Lupe Pintor of Mexico. In the second, Wilfred Benítez defended his WBC world Jr Middleweight championship against the former WBA Welterweight champion of the world Thomas Hearns. Gomez beat Pintor by fourteenth-round technical knockout in a fight that has been considered among the greatest of all times between Mexicans and Puerto Ricans and the greatest fight at the Super Bantamweight division while Hearns beat Benitez by fifteen-rounds majority decision. The Superdome is located on 70 acres of land, near the former Girod Street Cemetery. The dome has an interior space of 125 million cubic feet, a height of 253 feet, a dome diameter of 680 feet, and a total floor area of 269,000 square feet.