MAGAZINE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last month, we lost one of the greatest boxers of all time, Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker, Sr.  On July 14th, Pernell was hit by a car and died on the scene in his hometown of Virginia.  Sweet Pea died at the age of 55.  Pernell is known as a southpaw fighter with good defensive skills.  He was a professional boxer who began his professional boxing career in 1984 and retired in 2001.  Whitaker has won titles in the light weight, light welterweight, welterweight, and light middle-weight classes.  After his retirement in 2001, he became a boxing trainer; training boxers like Dorin Spivey, Joel Julio, Calvin Brock, and Zab Judah.  In 2006, Pernell was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.  Pernell landed some big fights with some of the best boxers in the world.  One of the biggest fights that helped people recognize that Pernell was a force to reckon with was in 1995, his rematch fight with boxer, Julio Cesar Chavez, which  Whitaker won and took the WBC title. 

 

He went on to fight Oscar De La Hoya in 1997 and this was a controversial loss, many felt that Pernell won the fight, but the judges voted otherwise.  In 1999, Pernell came up against Felix Trinidad and was defeated in a bout where the score card numbers were pretty close.  Sweet Pea’s last fight was in 2001 with Carlos Bojorquez, where he broke his clavicle and was forced to retire.  He finished is professional career with an on official record of 46 fights, 40 wins and 4 losses with 17 knockouts, which proves that “Sweet Pea” is definitely one of the greatest of all times.  Rest in peace, “Sweet Pete,” which was his original nickname.

 

 

 

 

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