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
Michael Spinks vs. Dwight Muhammad Qawi desperate to score a knockout. But Spinks made him miss frequently, bobbing his head and trying to keep his distance from Qawi. (In 2006, Qawi bitterly told "Sports Illustrated" that Spinks "ran like a thief" during the fight.) After the fight ended, the scorecards were read: judge Tony Castellano had scored the fight 144-140, judge Tony Perez had it at 144-141, and judge Frank Cappuccino had it also at 144-141, all in favor of Spinks. The closeness of the decision made fans write to magazines and newspapers, asking for a rematch. The rematch came very close to happening; it was