THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 19, 1995 TAG: 9511190480
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines
Pernell ``Sweetpea'' Whitaker dispatched another overmatched opponent Saturday night with a sixth-round knockout and now can look ahead to some alluring challenges in 1996.
Whitaker pounded Jake Rodriguez, his former sparring partner, with a slew of punches throughout the bout. In the sixth round he bored in on Rodriguez, wobbling him with a combination early in the round, then dropping him with another combination punctuated by a left hook midway through the round.
Rodriguez got up, but Whitaker was upon him again. A left to the head and a right to the body dropped Rodriguez again, and this time he could not beat referee Frank Cappuccino's count. The time of the knockout before a crowd of 5,112 at the Atlantic City Convention Center was 2:45 of the sixth.
``I was able to get a great jab going tonight, which set up the head shots,'' said Whitaker, who defended his World Boxing Council welterweight title for the fifth time. ``The head shots set up the body shots, and that's how I was able to get him out of there.''
It was the 16th career knockout for Whitaker (37-1-1) but only the first in three years and the first in a world title fight since he stopped Juan Nazario to unify the lightweight division in August 1990.
``He caught me with a good shot,'' said Rodriguez (28-4-2). ``What can I say? He's quick, and he throws quick punches. I tried to get my shots in. sometimes I did, sometimes I didn't.''
In 1996, Whitaker gets a shot at some big-money, high profile opponents in a tantalizing welterweight unification series.
Whitaker and International Boxing Federation champ Felix Trinidad - who scored a fourth-round knockout of Larry Barnes on the undercard - are expected to fight in the first half of 1996. The winner will meet World Boxing Association welterweight champ Ike Quartey.
Both Trinidad and Quartey, who was at ringside Saturday, are undefeated young champions with growing reputations and credentials.
``I'm interested in Whitaker, and he is interested in me,'' Trinidad said.
``Everyone wants the Trinidad fight, so let's do it,'' Whitaker said. ``Let's do it right now.''
Saturday's card was dubbed ``Collision Course'' in anticipation of a Whitaker-Trinidad fight. But the collision will have to wait a while.
Whitaker's next fight is penciled in for April, but Trinidad is not considered the likely opponent because he is embroiled in a contractual dispute with promoter Don King. Yori Boy Campas and Hector Camacho could be next on Whitaker's plate.
Rodriguez (28-4-2), a career junior welterweight and former world champ, was fighting as a welterweight for the first time. He was an 8-1 underdog at fight time. Rodriguez had worked as Whitaker's sparring partner when the champ from Virginia Beach prepared for his previous two fights.
Rodriguez ate a lot of Whitaker jabs from the get-go. Whitaker also threw a bevy of good hooks and combinations, and fought primarily inside. By the end of the second round, Rodriguez was noticeably puffy under both eyes.
He dined on more leather in the third through the fifth. In the third Whitaker connected with a left that snapped Rodriguez' head back, then powdered him with an uppercut in the final five seconds of the round. by CNB