Boxer known for epic battle against Chavez
1993 title fight at Alamodome ended in draw and controversy
Pernell “Sweat Pea” Whitaker, an Olympic boxing champion who trained for several years in Houston, died Sunday night in Virginia Beach, Va., after being hit by a car, authorities said. He was 55.
“I was saddened by the news because I knew Pernell for a long time,” Houston trainer Ronnie Shields said. “He was a great guy. If Pernell Whitaker liked you, he’d do anything for you. He always tried to do the right thing and to help people. If he ever told you he was going to do something for you, he did it.”
Shields was planning to see Whitaker, whom he had trained for 10 years in the 1980s and ‘90s, this weekend at the MGM Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. Shields’ heavyweight Efe Ajagba is scheduled to fight on the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Keith Thurman bout, and Whitaker, a former four-division world title-holder, was to be there as a celebrity guest.
A 1984 Olympic gold medalist, Whitaker (404-1, 17 knockouts) unified the world lightweight championship between 1989 and 1991 and went on to capture world titles in the 140-, 147- and 154pound weight divisions. He retired in 2001 and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2006.
So proficient was Whitaker at his craft, Shields said, that it made his job easy.
“You didn’t have to teach Pernell Whitaker anything because he already knew everything,” Shields said. “He was a genius, really. He was that good and everybody knew it. All you had to do was tell him a few things and he’d do the rest on his own.”
Frank Tate, who also won a gold medal in 1984 and was a former middleweight world title-holder, forged a close bond with Whitaker during the Olympics, and they remained friends over the years.
“It was very sad because we were like family, all the ‘84 team members,” said Tate of the U.S. team that won nine of 12 gold medals in Los Angeles. “We stuck together, and that’s what made us so successful. It’s a big loss. He’s going to be missed”
Tate said he last spoke to Whitaker about three months ago when Whitaker phoned him to catch up and rib Tate about not reconnecting often enough.
“He called me and said, ‘I’m Pernell Whitaker.’ And I told him, ‘I’m Frank Tate,’ ” said Tate, now a trainer at Savannah’s Boxing.
“He was a very nice guy and very funny, but when it came to boxing he took it to a different level. He was serious and he took care of business.”
Over the course of his 16year pro career, Whitaker fought fellow Hall of Famers Azumah Nelson, Julio Cesar Chavez, Oscar De La Hoya and Felix Trinidad. Whitaker and Chavez were widely recognized as the best and second-best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, respectively, when they faced off at the Alamodome in San Antonio in September 1993. Whitaker appeared to have won comfortably, but it was controversially declared a draw.
Known for his defensive prowess, Whitaker had an uncanny ability to evade incoming blows with catlike reflexes while lingering tantalizingly within his opponents’ punching range.
Lou Savarese, a former heavyweight contender and owner of the Main Boxing Gym, befriended Whitaker when they often crossed paths at various Houston gyms. He remembers being mesmerized by Whitaker’s speed and cunning.
“I was young at the time and I would sit there, watch him train and be in awe of him,” Savarese said. “His lateral movement was amazing and he was just so quick. He wasn’t a big puncher but he would gain your respect definitely.”