By: Christopher Roche

James “Buddy” McGirt, Jr. entered the upset friendly horse town of Saratoga, New York with one mission in mind: he wanted to put himself back on the map as a viable prospect. McGirt, Jr. accomplished his mission with flying colors, as he planted Raymond Joval twice in round three, on his way to a wide unanimous decision victory.

After suffering a devastating knockout loss in his last bout, which was on national television, some doubted that McGirt deserved to be featured in an ESPN main event. Observers also further questioned the decision to put the largely untested McGirt, Jr. in with top ten middleweight Joval.

McGirt, Jr. silenced his critics in a huge way last night. From the opening bell, McGirt looked sharp, and his punches were crisp. McGirt, Jr. used his height and reach to catch Joval, who often bounded in without jabbing. McGirt, Jr. rocked Joval back several times, and in the third he sent the 39 year-old to the his knees with a right hand. When Joval got back up, McGirt, Jr. trapped him against the ropes and sent him crashing down with a punishing left.

Joval rallied back in the middle rounds, but McGirt, Jr. was extremely determined, and he stymied Joval’s rally. In the end, the decision was elementary, and the only question was by how much? McGirt, Jr. was victorious by margins of 97-91 and 99-89 (twice). The 25 year-old McGirt, Jr., of Brentwood, Long Island, improved to 19-1, 9 KO’s, while Joval fell to 37-5, 16 KO’s.