Boxing News Boxing News
On April 17, Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez (50-2-2 28 KO’s) will return to his homeland of Argentina to give his local fans the opportunity to finally see him live in person.
While no opponent or exact location is completely confirmed for the large event, it is publicly known that undefeated British contender Martin Murray (24-0-1 10 KO’s) is a very strong front runner for the serious opportunity.
But there are conditions that could possibly, but not likely bypass the situation which I will discuss in a moment.
Hard hitting Colombian Jose Miguel Torres (26-5-0 23 KO’s), Italian contender Domenico Spada (36-4-0 18 KO’s), and British Former European champion Kerry Hope (17-4-0 1 KO) are also being considered for the fight.
Sergio’s promoter Lou DiBella says the “desired opponent”, Martin Murray, would have to defeat his next opponent, Jorge Navarro 12-0-0 10 KO’s ) on the Hatton vs. Senchenko undercard to get the shot. With that, it is very likely Murray would get the title shot.
Martinez, age 37, is likely going to close out his solid career in the coming years. Despite a round 12 knockdown scare, Martinez recently decisively beat his biggest remaining adversary, Mexican brawler Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. Previously, he had also defeated American stars Kelly Pavlik and Paul Williams to solidify himself as the world’s best Middleweight.
Martinez has expressed interest in a few fights in his native Argentina, after taking advantage of many appearances in the United States. This would be a great opportunity for the undisputed Middleweight champion to make a strongly publicized hero’s return.
Murray, age 30, is looking to expose his name internationally, and a win, or at least a strong, competitive performance, will get him that.
He has completely dominated virtually all opposition so far in his career and in his one truly notable fight he gave veteran German world titleholder Felix Sturm a run for his money in a controversial draw. That fight was very back-and-forth and close, it likely earned him this big Martinez shot.
As in the Sturm fight, Murray will look to do the best he can against Martinez if he gets the shot.
No matter what, you can tune in live on HBO’s World Championship Boxing April 17th for Martinez vs. Murray, or perhaps it will be Martinez vs. Torres, Spada or Hope, but remember, the official opponent is still relying on the result of Murray vs. Navarro on the Hatton vs. Senchenko event.
Follow Saddoboxing.com for coverage of the fight card and official Martinez opponent announcement.
Corey Quincy is a freelance boxing writer for Saddoboxing, his blog Blboxing.com and various other sites. Like his page on Facebook at Blboxing.com and follow him on Twitter at Quincyboxingfan
