Former Champion Boxer Pernell Whitaker Dead at 55: Reports

Stock photo of an ambulance. (Michael Gil via Wikimedia Commons)

Former multi-weight boxing champion Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker, considered a master of defensive boxing, was killed on July 14.

According to TMZ, he was hit by a car in Virginia Beach. He was 55.

Officials got a call at around 10 p.m. in response to an accident near Northampton Boulevard and Baker Road.

Police arrived on the scene, and they found a man who was hit by a vehicle. News outlets, including TMZ and local news outlet WTKR, said it was Whitaker.

Whitaker was a four-weight boxing champion and an Olympic gold medalist, the report said.

WTKR reported that the driver of the vehicle that allegedly hit the former boxer stayed on the scene of the crash and is cooperating with authorities.

“I guess he was wearing dark clothes, the road was dark and the driver didn’t see him,” Devon Whitaker, his 23-year-old son, told Pilotonline.com. He added that his father was a “cool guy.”

“That’s all I can say about him,” he continued. “I can’t really say how I’m feeling because I’m feeling shocked. I’m still trying to process everything that’s going on. But he was a cool guy.”

The report said he frequented Wareing’s Gym in Virginia Beach.

“He was a legacy here,” said Jake Wareing. “I grew up watching him all the time.”

He said he would stop in the gym and give motivational talks.

Whittaker was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2006, and he is considered one of the greatest boxers ever.

Whitaker had a professional record of 40 wins (17 by knockout), four losses, and a draw. He retired in 2001.

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Correction: Headline and article have been updated to reflect the current condition of Michael Sleggs