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2 ½-1 FAVORITE ACCORDING TO WALLSTREET.COM SPORTSBOOK
THREE-TIME CHAMP IN THREE DIFFERENT WEIGHT CLASSES
MIDDLEWEIGHT (2001- defended once)
JUNIOR MIDDLEWEIGHT (2000-defended twice)
WELTERWEIGHT (1993-1999-defended 15 times. Armstrong, 19 defenses, welter record)
20-1, 17 KO'S IN CHAMPIONSHIP FIGHTS
1-1, 1 KO AT MIDDLEWEIGHT
3-0, 2 KO'S AT JR. MIDDLE
16-0-0, 14 KO'S AT WELTER
2-YEAR-143 DAY LAYOFF LONGEST OF PRO CAREER
ONE OF EIGHT WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPS TO WIN MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
(Hearns, Duran, Leonard, Griffith, Basilio, Robinson & Walker)
HAS FOUGHT 11 CURRENT OR PAST WORLD CHAMPS (10-1, 5 KO'S vs. 11 CHAMPS)
42 FIGHTS HAVE LASTED 206 ROUNDS AND AVERAGED 4.8 ROUNDS
HAS 34 KO'S IN 42 FIGHTS (81%)
HAS 8 FIRST ROUND KO'S
KO'S BY ROUND- 1ST-8; 2ND-6; 3RD-4; 4TH-8; 5TH-4; 6TH-1; 8TH-1; 10TH-1; 12TH-1
30 OF HIS 34 KO'S (88%) OCCURRED INSIDE FIVE ROUNDS
HAS 3 KO'S PAST THE SIXTH ROUND
5/11/02 KO 4 HACINE CHERIFI (fed overmatched Cherifi, 34, following ko loss to Hopkins seven months earlier. Landed 49% of 42 punches per round. Balsy Cherifi, who decisioned Keith Holmes in '98 to win a version of middleweight title, landed just 18% of his 47 attempts. Cherifi down once in 3rd, twice in 4th.)
9/29/01 KO by 12 BERNARD HOPKINS (for undisputed middle champ. Tito a 5-2 favorite. Tito managed just 27 total punches per round, landing just 129 of 329 total punches to 260 of 653 (40%) for Hopkins, who landed 35% of his 23 jabs per round and 40% of his power punches. Crowd of 19,000-plus at Garden. Hopkins ahead 107-102,107-102 & 109-100 thru 11 rounds.
5/12/01 KO 5 WILLIAM JOPPY (for Joppy's share of middle.champ. Came out blazing in middleweight debut, also at New York's Madison Square Garden. Joppy down in 1st, 4th & 5th. Felix landed 58% of his total punches.
12/2/00 KO 12 FERNANDO VARGAS (retained jr. middle. title and won Vargas'. Nearly ended fight before it heated up, dropping Vargas with left hook :23 seconds into fight. Vargas down again in 1st. Gutsy Vargas pulled himself together and got himself into fight by 4th round, dropping Tito with right hand. Tito then came on in rounds 8-10,as Vargas, needing KO, stormed out for 12th and was met with left hook, right hand that dropped him again. Two more knockdowns followed (last one not necessary). Scoring thru 11: 103-100 T; 104-100 T; 109-99 T. Tito landed 50% of his total punches and 48% of his power shots. Vargas hasn't been the same fighter since.)
3/3/00 W 12 DAVID REID (won Reid's jr. middle. champ. outdoors at Caesars Palace. Again climbed off canvas to do so, in 3rd round. Reid led on all cards thru 6 rounds. Then Tito turned up the heat, dropping Reid in 7th and three times in 11th. REID WAS THIRD U.S. OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST TITO DEFEATED IN LAST 4 FIGHTS (WHITAKER, DELAHOYA & REID).
9/18/99 W 12 (maj) OSCAR DELAHOYA (this one's still being debated, although Oscar would later say he blew the fight by running last 4 rounds-which shouldn't diminish Oscar's work in first 8 rounds. Oscar landed 100 more punches-bolstered by 100-punch edge in jab connects. Give Tito credit, he kept coming- he landed an average of just 6 of 19 power shots in rounds 1 thru 8, then 19 of 42 power shots over the last 4 rounds. For the fight Tito landed 124 of 318 power shots to 120 of 277 for Oscar. Scoring: 115-113 T; 115-114 T; 114-114.)
2/20/99 W 12 PERNELL WHITAKER (retained welter champ. at Garden vs. Whitaker, a shell of the fighter he once was. How bad was the beating? Tito landed 54% of his total punches- Whitaker's previous 20 championship fight opponents landed just 28% of their total punches.)
THREE-TIME CHAMP IN THREE DIFFERENT WEIGHT CLASSES
MIDDLEWEIGHT (2001- defended once)
JUNIOR MIDDLEWEIGHT (2000-defended twice)
WELTERWEIGHT (1993-1999-defended 15 times. Armstrong, 19 defenses, welter record)
20-1, 17 KO'S IN CHAMPIONSHIP FIGHTS
1-1, 1 KO AT MIDDLEWEIGHT
3-0, 2 KO'S AT JR. MIDDLE
16-0-0, 14 KO'S AT WELTER
2-YEAR-143 DAY LAYOFF LONGEST OF PRO CAREER
ONE OF EIGHT WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPS TO WIN MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
(Hearns, Duran, Leonard, Griffith, Basilio, Robinson & Walker)
HAS FOUGHT 11 CURRENT OR PAST WORLD CHAMPS (10-1, 5 KO'S vs. 11 CHAMPS)
42 FIGHTS HAVE LASTED 206 ROUNDS AND AVERAGED 4.8 ROUNDS
HAS 34 KO'S IN 42 FIGHTS (81%)
HAS 8 FIRST ROUND KO'S
KO'S BY ROUND- 1ST-8; 2ND-6; 3RD-4; 4TH-8; 5TH-4; 6TH-1; 8TH-1; 10TH-1; 12TH-1
30 OF HIS 34 KO'S (88%) OCCURRED INSIDE FIVE ROUNDS
HAS 3 KO'S PAST THE SIXTH ROUND
5/11/02 KO 4 HACINE CHERIFI (fed overmatched Cherifi, 34, following ko loss to Hopkins seven months earlier. Landed 49% of 42 punches per round. Balsy Cherifi, who decisioned Keith Holmes in '98 to win a version of middleweight title, landed just 18% of his 47 attempts. Cherifi down once in 3rd, twice in 4th.)
9/29/01 KO by 12 BERNARD HOPKINS (for undisputed middle champ. Tito a 5-2 favorite. Tito managed just 27 total punches per round, landing just 129 of 329 total punches to 260 of 653 (40%) for Hopkins, who landed 35% of his 23 jabs per round and 40% of his power punches. Crowd of 19,000-plus at Garden. Hopkins ahead 107-102,107-102 & 109-100 thru 11 rounds.
5/12/01 KO 5 WILLIAM JOPPY (for Joppy's share of middle.champ. Came out blazing in middleweight debut, also at New York's Madison Square Garden. Joppy down in 1st, 4th & 5th. Felix landed 58% of his total punches.
12/2/00 KO 12 FERNANDO VARGAS (retained jr. middle. title and won Vargas'. Nearly ended fight before it heated up, dropping Vargas with left hook :23 seconds into fight. Vargas down again in 1st. Gutsy Vargas pulled himself together and got himself into fight by 4th round, dropping Tito with right hand. Tito then came on in rounds 8-10,as Vargas, needing KO, stormed out for 12th and was met with left hook, right hand that dropped him again. Two more knockdowns followed (last one not necessary). Scoring thru 11: 103-100 T; 104-100 T; 109-99 T. Tito landed 50% of his total punches and 48% of his power shots. Vargas hasn't been the same fighter since.)
3/3/00 W 12 DAVID REID (won Reid's jr. middle. champ. outdoors at Caesars Palace. Again climbed off canvas to do so, in 3rd round. Reid led on all cards thru 6 rounds. Then Tito turned up the heat, dropping Reid in 7th and three times in 11th. REID WAS THIRD U.S. OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST TITO DEFEATED IN LAST 4 FIGHTS (WHITAKER, DELAHOYA & REID).
9/18/99 W 12 (maj) OSCAR DELAHOYA (this one's still being debated, although Oscar would later say he blew the fight by running last 4 rounds-which shouldn't diminish Oscar's work in first 8 rounds. Oscar landed 100 more punches-bolstered by 100-punch edge in jab connects. Give Tito credit, he kept coming- he landed an average of just 6 of 19 power shots in rounds 1 thru 8, then 19 of 42 power shots over the last 4 rounds. For the fight Tito landed 124 of 318 power shots to 120 of 277 for Oscar. Scoring: 115-113 T; 115-114 T; 114-114.)
2/20/99 W 12 PERNELL WHITAKER (retained welter champ. at Garden vs. Whitaker, a shell of the fighter he once was. How bad was the beating? Tito landed 54% of his total punches- Whitaker's previous 20 championship fight opponents landed just 28% of their total punches.)
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