Cory Spinks welterweight titles in 1997. Spinks went 29-2 in his first 31 contests, only losing to Antonio Díaz (regarded as a controversial decision by some boxing analysts and ringside observers) and Michele Piccirillo, whom he defeated by decision in a re-match. However, Spinks rose to boxing stardom by unifying the WBC, WBA, IBF, and "The Ring" and lineal welterweight titles on December 13, 2003, when he defeated Ricardo Mayorga by majority decision. Spinks was a 5 to 1 underdog going into the fight with Mayorga. The judges scored the fight 114-112, 117-109, 114-114, favoring Spinks. Spink' first Welterweight title defense came
Mike Tyson vs. Michael Spinks between Tyson and Spinks grew to settle the issue of who the real champion was, but negotiations were protracted because Tyson's co-managers Bill Cayton and Jimmy Jacobs and Spinks' manager Butch Lewis struggled to agree on terms. Negotiations temporarily broke down when Lewis insisted on a $15 million guarantee for his fighter. Annoyed at constantly being asked about the fight, Tyson eventually demanded that his managers reach an agreement with Lewis. By April an agreement had been reached, although another problem arose when the IBF threatened to strip Tyson of their title if the fight was not scheduled for 15