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McGirt
fighting on ShoBox
April 11 vs. DeLeon
VERO BEACH, Florida (March 25, 2008) – Unbeaten super middleweight prospect
James McGirt, Jr. (18-0, 9 KOs) squares-off with another son of a former
world champion, Carlos “Baby Sugar” DeLeon, Jr. (19-2-2, 12 KOs), April 11
in the 10-round co-feature on ShoBox, live from Miccosukee Resort in Miami.
“Fighting on ShoBox means everything to me,” McGirt said. “It’s a stepping
stone for my career and I’m very excited. I fought on ShoBox one other time,
when I defeated Aaron Pryor’s son, Stephan. Every fight is a new chapter in
my career, each one the biggest of my life. I know DeLeon is going to bring
his ‘A’ game. I’ve got to be better than him, smarter than him in the ring.
I know my father will be telling me to keep my right hand up.
“I’ve been working very hard, so going the distance (in his first scheduled
10 round fight) won’t be a problem, if I need to. It’s his first 10-round
fight, too. My weight is right on and I’ve never been this close to the
contracted weight so far out from a fight. I’ve been in the gym for so long,
waiting for a fight since October, working regularly since right before New
Years. For the past 2 ½ months I’ve been on a strength program, lifting
weights, and I’ve bulked up a little. I’ve found a home at super
middleweight.”
The fathers of McGirt and DeLeon were world champions at the same time in
1988. James “Buddy” McGirt, St., who had a 73-6-1 (48 KOs) record as a pro,
was a 2-time world champion in two weight classes (IBF light welterweight
1988, WBC welterweight 1991-93). Carlos “Sugar” DeLeon, Sr., 52-8-1 (32 KOs)
as a pro, was a 4-time WBC cruiserweight champion (1980-82, 1983-85,
1986-88, 1989).
“James is ready to take it to the next level,” McGirt's manager, Dennis
Witherow, remarked. “We’ve had him on a strength-and-conditioning program.
We saw a small difference in his last fight against (Jason) Naugler, but he
had only been on the program for 30 days. This fight we expect to see a
substantial difference. I think some people are going to be surprised by
James’ strength. His boxing skills continue to get better, too. ‘Buddy’
knows boxing so well that he can even pick-out James’ natural skills and
still make them better. He’s constantly on James to improve.
“We’re all excited about James fighting again on ShoBox. A win can get James
a top 10 fighter next. He’s willing and deserves that, too. You can count on
one hand the number of rounds James has lost. He wants to prove that he’s a
premier fighter making a name for himself, not the son of a great fighter
being protected. As James’ opponents are better, he gets better.”
McGirt, rated No. 26 by the WBC, is a southpaw originally from Brentwood,
New York, now living and fighting out of Vero Beach, Florida. DeLeon, rated
No. 31 by the WBC, is the reigning USNBC champion from Puerto Rico.
The McGirts are on a mission to become the first family in boxing to feature
father-son world champions with the former working his natural son’s corner
as head trainer when the latter captures a major world title. |
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