By Vitali Shaposhnikov: Hype! This was the only word I could come up with in regards to Sergio “Maravilla” Martines (47-2-2), the current WBC and WBO middleweight champion. He has been a growing sensation since his loss to Paul Williams (39-2-0) back in 2009. Since then, Martinez has generated three decisive winning performances: beating Kelly Pavlik (36-2-0) via UD, brutally knocking out Paul Williams in the second round in their rematch, and recently defeating a previously unbeaten Serhiy Dzinziruk (37-1-0) via 8 round TKO. Some, including myself, would say that despite these wins, he is still largely untested and is enjoying a slightly elevated excitement.
In his recent interviews (and there have been plenty since this past Saturday, March 12, 2011), Martinez mentioned three names he is eyeing: Miguel Cotto (36-2-0), Floyd Mayweather Jr. (41-0-0), and of course as expected, Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2). Sure those are the biggest names for Martinez to fight, but how would they turn out if they actually came to fruition?
“If Cotto is man enough, he will ask to fight Sergio Martinez,” said Sergio (http://www.examiner.com/fight-sports-in-national/sergio-martinez-to-fight-two-more-times-2011-wants-fight-with-miguel-cotto). This fight is not impossible to make, and will be more probable if Cotto beats Antonio Margarito (38-7-0) in their proposed rematch. They could meet at 154lbs, which would be fair and easily achievable for both.
Even with Cotto winning his last two fights, he would struggle with Martinez. Cotto is a bit of a powerhouse, looking forward to coming in and trading with his opponents. The main problem for him with Martinez would be Sergio’s constant lateral movement, and his recently displayed capability of jaw dropping consistent jabbing from any and all angles. While I see this fight even for the first half, I predict Cotto losing via a late round knockout. The constant pressure and damage from a naturally bigger guy, would eventually add up, causing Cotto to abandon all defense. The only advantage for Cotto is that Martinez likes to fight with his hands down, using upper body movement to avoid getting hit. Going to the body, would be a good way to try and slow Martinez down.
Calling out Manny Pacquiao after his win against Dzinziruk this past Saturday, not only created a spark in the crowd attending the fight and the fans watching on television, but also produced a reaction from the Pacman himself: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk_-Z5Qe-QE&sns=fb). The only thing I can say, is that Martinez is simply too big for Pacquiao. Pacquiao’s biggest fight was at 150lbs against a slower Antonio Margarito, which despite his win, was a dangerous move. Martinez is unlikely to go down under 154lbs, while Freddie Roach previously stated they will never fight above 150lbs for the safety of his fighter. But let’s let our imaginations run wild, and picture that fight taking place. Yes, Pacquiao is both fast and strong, with amazing accuracy. But how will he take a naturally bigger fighter’s solid jab? Neither Cotto nor Margarito showed much in the jab department in their fights against Pacquiao, letting him come close and do as he pleased. With Martinez using his well developed heavy handed jab, as well as more than decent footwork, Pacquiao may find himself a little lost. Sure Pacquiao has everything he needs to avoid getting hit by Martinez, but does he have anything need to hit him back? Most would disagree with me on this, but if they happened to mix it up in the middle of the ring, Pacquiao would be a clear winner in my book. Pacquiao’s hand speed is way quicker than Martinez’s, and would allow very little room for Martinez to find a counter punch opportunity; he would have bail. But in all likelihood, this would not happen. Throwing those wide left overhead hooks would land Martinez in trouble as well, as he is usually facing down when throwing them. Pacquiao would take all the advantage that situation, coming in and unloading a barrage of shots. Having said all that, I see Martinez winning that fight via a U.D. thanks to his size and consistent pressuring jab.
And now on to the cream of the crop: Floyd Mayweather Jr. First and foremost, let’s get the weight out of the way. Mayweather Jr. has fought over 150lbs only once in his entire career, and that was against Oscar De La Hoya (39-6-0) at 154lbs in 2007. This is already an issue with the proposed challenge. Mayweather Jr. is very unlikely to go up in weight anywhere above 147lbs, and Martinez should not aim to drench himself to anything under 150lbs. Once again, letting crazy thoughts turn into a possibility, I thought about the process and the outcome that would likely occur. One thing I can undoubtedly tell you right now, is that Martinez’s upped body movement is simply too slow to avoid Mayweather’s hand speed, and his “arms down” style will not help. Martinez likes to fight against “hungry” opponents, who come at him, giving him the chance to counter. Mayweather Jr. will not do that. His long reaching jab will tag Martinez all night, leaving Martinez with desperation in figuring out what do to next, and how to go about doing it. There is nothing that Martinez can do to hurt Mayweather Jr.; he is too slick, too fast-footed, and too damn smart. As the matter of fact, Mayweahter Jr. has to be the smartest boxer alive today. Catching Mayweather Jr. on the ropes and working strictly the body, would be the one and only way for Martinez to score some points and do some damage to his smaller opponent. Countering Floyd would be next to impossible, as Floyd’s jabs are followed closely by an upped body retraction if needed. To sum it up: Mayweather Jr. via a very dominating yet exceedingly boring U.D.
Given that a fight against Pacquiao and Mayweather is unlikely, I would love to see Cotto and Martinez square off in the ring sometime soon. Let’s leave the Pacquiaos and the Mayweather Jrs. to Floyd and Manny. .