HOW TO WATCH BOXING
Think of Pernell Whitaker, the welterweight version of Floyd Mayweather, or light heavyweight Bernard Hopkins. In almost all of their big fights, the expectations were that the fight would go the distance, yet all their major bouts were televised by the leading boxing networks. When a cutie is elite, technical mastery becomes a selling point, especially when matched against aggressive opponents or big punchers: “How will the supremely talented _______ tame the hard-charging _______? Tune in at 10 p.m. Eastern to find out!” As a promoter and former HBO Boxing executive, Lou DiBella has seen his share of cuties. And to his and HBO’s credit, they never shied away from a cutie if the fighter was that talented. “If a guy was good enough, I never had an attitude where I didn’t want his style,” said DiBella. “The problem is not necessarily a cutie. It’s matching a cutie with a cutie. Or matching a cutie with a guy who isn’t an aggressive
fighter or a guy who doesn’t throw a lot of [punches].” So, what’s a good way to beat a cutie? Hall of Fame boxer and trainer James “Buddy” McGirt understands the cutie better than many. As a fighter he had two competitive losses to Whitaker, one of the all-time best cuties, and McGirt also trained former champion Paulie Malignaggi, who certainly can be defined as a cutie. “It may sound crazy,” said McGirt, “but you got to be patient against these guys. Because if you’re not patient, you’ll walk into a bunch of shit. You got to be patient and apply controlled pressure. It sounds easy, but it’s not. Most guys when they apply pressure just try to put it on, hoping to land a big shot. You know, you got to be smart in there with that controlled pressure. Take your time. Be measured. Be consistent
with your pressure.” And DiBella wants to set the record straight when it comes to cuties. He doesn’t think it’s fair that there’s a pejorative connotation with them. “I don’t view ‘cutie’ as a negative,” he said. “I view ‘stinker’ as a negative. Sure, I saw some stinkers, but some of those guys weren’t wonderful pure boxers. See, if you’re a true cutie, your ability to box allows you to engage. It doesn’t mean you’re running away. And sometimes that’s lost on people. “Go watch Pernell Whitaker. Pernell Whitaker didn’t run around from anybody. He was in the pocket. You can be cute as fuck and be impossible to fight and not be a stinker. “Going back to my HBO days, if you were good enough, you were going to get a fight. It might dictate matchups I would and wouldn’t buy, though. If I had a guy that was a supremely talented boxer but didn’t like to get hit, I would put him in with a guy who went balls to the wall to try to hit him. The matchmaking was very important.”
Concept in practice: Chris Byrd-Evander Holyfield, 2002
Even with a “cutie” in the ring, the fight wasn’t boring. Byrd wasn’t there to stink it out; he wanted to improve his standing in the sport – winning a second title belt and showing HBO executives that he could be entertaining in the ring. Of course, his footwork was terrific and his defense was on point, but it was the sequences where he came forward that were truly unexpected and thrilling. Byrd feasted on Holyfield with single jabs to the body and double jab-left hand combinations, where he would vary the straight left either to Holyfield’s head or chest. Byrd showed that not only could he be aggressive at times, but that he could be just as dominant in fighting in that style. Byrd’s performance was an example of a cutie in the best sense of the term. According to CompuBox, he landed 252 of 747 punches while Holyfield was 102 out of 344. Let’s break those numbers down for a moment. Byrd, the supposed “negative” fighter, threw over 62 punches a round, well over the heavyweight average, which is often listed at 40 punches a round. Meanwhile, Holyfield couldn’t even muster half of Byrd’s output. In addition, Byrd landed almost two and a half times the number of punches that Holyfield did. Byrd won a unanimous decision with scores of 117- 111, 117-111 and 116-112. The final tally actually flattered Holyfield’s performance. Two of his best rounds were the 10th and 11th, well after the fight was out of reach on the scorecards. Essentially, all Byrd had to do at that point was remain on his feet and hear the final bell; and he did. Cuties may not always be everyone’s cup of tea, but when they are at their best, they can exhibit a thrilling dominance in the ring. And on this night, Byrd defeated a surefire future Hall of Famer with ease – and panache.
Chris Byrd and Evander Holyfield fought for a vacant IBF heavyweight belt in December 2002. Although Holyfield (38-5-2 at the time of the fight) entered the ring at 40 and was no longer the pound-for-pound-level fighter that he had been 10 years prior, he was still viable at the top rungs of the heavyweight division. He’d won a heavyweight title for the fourth time against John Ruiz in 2000 before losing the belt to Ruiz in a rematch and then drawing in a third fight. Prior to facing Byrd, Holyfield defeated former champion Hasim Rahman via a technical decision. Byrd (35-2) himself had been a recent titleholder, defeating Vitali Klitschko via an injury retirement in 2000. Byrd subsequently lost his title to Vitali’s brother, Wladimir, in his next fight. Byrd, a southpaw, didn’t have much power, but he had a mastery of angles, footwork and stellar hand speed. He was seen as an inconvenience because he often could make opponents look bad and in certain fights would only selectively engage. Heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis sidestepped Byrd in favor of less aggravating, more lucrative matchups, creating the Byrd-Holyfield title fight. Despite a reputation of being a negative fighter, Byrd was far more active than Holyfield throughout the match. Whatever he did, whether it was fighting off his back foot, circling Holyfield or even coming forward, he was superior. Although Holyfield would sometimes like to have fighters come to him, he didn’t have answers for Byrd’s hand or foot speed. Byrd would get in and out with ease. Consequently, Holyfield would load up on single shots, hoping that they would turn the tide of the fight.
Buddy McGirt learned all about cuties by facing Pernell Whitaker twice.
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