Buddy McGirt vs. Pernell Whitaker

Buddy McGirt vs. Pernell Whitaker, billed as "Pound for Pound: Who's Number One?" was a professional boxing match contested on March 6, 1993 for the WBC and lineal welterweight titles.

Pound for Pound: Who's Number One?

Date	March 6, 1993
Venue	Madison Square Garden in New York, New York
Title(s) on the line	WBC/lineal Welterweight Titles
Tale of the tape
Boxer James McGirt Pernell Whitaker Nickname "Buddy" "Sweet Pea" Hometown Brentwood, New York, U.S. Norfolk, Virginia, U.S. Purse $1,000,000 $1,250,000 Pre-fight record 59–2–1 31–1 Height 5 ft 6 ^1⁄2 in (169 cm) 5 ft 6 in (168 cm) Weight 147 lb (67 kg) 146 lb (66 kg) Style Orthodox Southpaw Recognition WBC/lineal Welterweight champion IBF Light Welterweight champion
Result
Whitaker defeats McGirt by unanimous decision

Background

A match between reigning WBC welterweight champion James "Buddy" McGirt and reigning IBF light welterweight champion Pernell Whitaker was made official for March 6, 1993 after McGirt's victory over Genaro Léon in January.[1] McGirt had suffered a left shoulder injury prior to his fight Léon, forcing him to win the fight virtually one-handed. McGirt decided to continue with his title defense despite the injury, claiming that "it's not an injury, it's just tendinitis." and that he was going into the fight against Whitaker at "95 percent."[2]

Both McGirt and Whitaker were considered among the best pound-for-pound fighters in boxing (along with the then-WBC light welterweight champion Julio César Chávez and then-WBC light middleweight champion Terry Norris). The winner of the fight was expected to be recognized as the number-one pound-for-pound fighter in the sport.[3]

Whitaker entered the fight as a 12–5 favorite and both fighters were set to earn a 7-figure payday. McGirt's purse was $1 million while Whitaker's was slightly higher at $1.25 million.[4]

The fight

The fight would go the full 12 rounds with Whitaker ultimately earning a close unanimous decision. The fight started off close but Whitaker took control in middle rounds as McGirt struggled with his left shoulder injury, basically fighting one-handed as he had his previous fight. Whitaker would out-land McGirt in punches, landing 314 of his 768 punches for a 41% success rate while McGirt landed 238 of 717 for a 33% rate. One judge had Whitaker ahead comfortably with a score of 117–111, whilst the other two judges score the fight close with Whitaker narrowly winning by scores of 115–114 and 115–113. Whitaker would describe the victory as "easy" while McGirt when asked of the loss, simply stated "My arm went. What can I say?"[5]

Aftermath

Unbeknownst to Whitaker, a deal had already been made prior to his fight with McGirt between his promoter Dan Duva and Julio César Chávez's promoter Don King that would see Chávez challenge for Whitaker's newly won title. Dan's father and Whitaker's trainer and manager Lou Duva had not told Whitaker of the Chávez bout until after his fight with McGirt because he "didn't want to take away his focus."[6]

McGirt was discovered to have a torn rotator cuff after the fight and would undergo surgery to repair the tear days later.[7] After returning to boxing in November and going 5–0 in his subsequent five fights, a rematch with Whitaker was agreed to in August 1994 and took place later in the year in October.[8]

Fight card

Weight Class	Weight		vs.		Method	Round	Notes
Welterweight	147 lb	Pernell Whitaker	def.	James McGirt (c)	UD	12/12	^Note 1
Bantamweight	118 lb	Junior Jones	def.	Juan Pablo Salazar	KO	4/12	^Note 2
Welterweight	147 lb	Larry Barnes	def.	Clarence Coleman	UD	10/10
Super Middleweight	168 lb	Joe Gatti	def.	Oscar Noriega	TKO	2/8
Light Heavyweight	175 lb	Lou Del Valle	def.	Daren Zenner	UD	6/6
Super Middleweight	168 lb	Lonnie Bradley	def.	Ken Wallace	MD	4/4

^Note 1 For WBC and lineal welterweight titles
^Note 2 For vacant WBC Continental Americas Bantamweight title

References

1. McGirt's Victory Is Anything But Routine, NY Times article, 1993-01-13, Retrieved on 2020-04-12
2. McGirt and His Obstacles: One Savvy Boxer, One Sore Shoulder, NY Times article, 1993-03-01, Retrieved on 2020-04-12
3. Out on a Limb, Sports Illustrated article, 1993-03-15, Retrieved on 2020-04-12
4. McGirt and Whitaker use different approaches for the same results, UPI article, 1993-03-05, Retrieved on 2020-04-12
5. Pernell Whitaker, using his speed and capitalizing on his..., UPI article, 1993-03-06, Retrieved on 2020-04-13
6. Whitaker Is Winner Over McGirt, NY Times article, 1993-03-07, Retrieved on 2020-04-12
7. McGirt Is Undaunted After Shoulder Surgery, NY Times article, 1993-03-16 Retrieved on 2020-04-12
8. Whitaker Foe Shoulders His Way Into Rematch, Daily Press article, 1994-08-17 Retrieved on 2020-04-12

Preceded by W12 Genaro Leon	Buddy McGirt's bouts March 6, 1993	Succeeded by W10 Nick Rupa
Preceded by KO1 Ben Baez	Pernell Whitaker's bouts March 6, 1993	Succeeded by D12 Julio César Chávez