Like Willie Pep before him, Pernell Whitaker was one of the best defensive fighters. This could be due in part to his tremendous amateur career in which he had 214 fights, of which he won an astounding 201!
Pernell won the Gold Medal (lightweight division) in the '84 Olympics. He then went on to fight as a professional. In only his 12th fight, he fought and defeated Roger Mayweather for the NABF Lightweight Title. As for quality opposition, he fought and beat Jose Luis Ramirez, Greg Haugen, Freddie Pendleton, Azumah Nelson, Jorge Paez, James McGirt, lost a disputed decision to Oscar De La Hoya, and had a draw with Julio Cesar Chavez, that most in attendence felt Whitaker clearly won.
