Former Welterweight King Buddy McGirt Says He Would Have Beaten Pac-Man, Says Pernell Whitaker And Meldrick Taylor Would Have Too!

By James Slater – Though in the long run hypothetical match-ups between greats from yesteryear and the best around today usually end up in argument and nothing much more, fans still seem attracted to “Dream Fight” scenarios. Actually, it’s not only the fans that enjoy/get excited about/get angry about these kind of boxing articles – sometimes the fighters themselves get involved..

Just recently, U.K boxing weekly Boxing News has ran a series of “who would win?” pieces on their website (with Tyson-Ali and Chavez-Arguello amongst the “Dream Fights”) and this week, in speaking with the website of Ring Magazine, former light-welter and welterweight king turned world championship trainer James “Buddy” McGirt gave his take on what would have happened had either a peak Pernell Whitaker or a peak Meldrick Taylor met today’s superstar that is Manny Pacquiao. McGirt also gave his opinion on what would have happened had he himself fought Pac-Man.

Buddy gave some interesting quotes, too!

“[Juan Manuel] Marquez showed the script on how to beat Pacquiao,” McGirt told Lem Satterfield. “A guy like Pacquiao, guys like that, you’ve got to punch when they punch. You’ve got to throw them off their rhythm. Once a guy like Pacquiao gets his rhythm going, you can forget about it. I just feel that if you keep your hands going against a guy like him, and you punch when he punches, and you give him different angles, that you can beat him.

“I would make the adjustment, baby. Me and Pacquiao early? I think that it would have been a chess match. But once I figured him out, then it would be in my favour. [Meldrick] Taylor, I think, would have been a little too fast for him. Pernell [Whitaker] would have beat him for sure.”

Doubtless many Pac-Man fans will strongly disagree with McGirt on all counts, but Buddy has a point when it comes to the speed Taylor held. And Whitaker, he was one of the best pure defensive fighters of all-time. My opinion? I agree with McGirt when it comes to Taylor and “Sweet Pea,” but I feel Pac-Man’s own speed would have been too much for Buddy himself. Remember, Taylor was way too fast for McGirt, stopping him at 140-pounds in 1988. Pac-Man’s speed and power, too, would have got to McGirt in my opinion.

There really were a number of great fighters at 140 and 147 back in “The Kid’s” day (Meldrick’s nickname), and had Pacquiao been fighting amongst them I think he would have found it tough. But again, it’s impossible to prove this kind of argument, one way or the other.

But imagine how fascinating a Taylor-Pacquiao fight, at 140, would have been! Or a Whitaker-Pacquiao clash at either 135, 140 or 147!

Now we’re really talking Dream Fights!