MIKE JONES BOXES HECTOR MUNOZ IN SEMIFINAL TO PAVLIK-MARTINEZ APRIL 17 AT BOARDWALK HALL
Atlantic City, NJ—Unbeaten Mike Jones, of Philadelphia, PA, takes on Hector “The Hurricane” Munoz, of Albuquerque, NM, in the fifth defense of his North American Boxing Association (NABA) welterweight title in a scheduled 10-round contest on Saturday evening, April 17, at in the 10,000-seat Boardwalk Hall.
In the scheduled 12-round main event, to be televised by HBO, Kelly Pavlik of Youngstown, OH, defends his WBC/WBO middleweight titles against Sergio Martinez, of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Jones, 26, scored the biggest win of his career Feb. 27 when he earned a unanimous 10-round decision over former world-title challenger Henry Bruseles, of Gurabo, Puerto Rico, in front of a standing-room-only crowd in the Grand Ballroom of Bally’s Atlantic City.
A pro since 2005, Jones is 20-0, 16 K0s. He was ranked No. 8 by the World Boxing Association (WBA), No. 11 by the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and No. 16 by the World Boxing Council (WBC) prior to the win over Bruseles.
Munoz, 31, has a record of 18-2-1, 11 K0s. In his last fight, Munoz was stopped in the 12th round by undefeated top contender (No. 3 WBA, No. 2 WBO) Antonin DeCarie, of Montreal, Canada.
Tickets for this blockbuster card are priced at $50, $100, $200 and $350. They are on sale at the offices of Peltz Boxing Promotions (215-765-0922) and all Ticketmaster outlets (1-800-745-3000). Tickets also can be purchased online at www.peltzboxing.xcom and www.Ticketmaster.com.
Q & A with Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez
By Anson Wainwright
One of the most underrated boxers in world Boxing Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez 44-2-2(24) is just six weeks from the biggest fight of his career when he challenge’s Kelly Pavlik for his WBC/WBO Middleweight titles. Originally from one of the tough suburbs of Buenos Aires in Argentina Martinez has carefully honed his skills since making his debut in late 1996. He quickly raced to 16-0-1(6) with all his fights taking place in his homeland. Then he got the call to take on another young gun a certain Antonio Margarito it was on the undercard of Marco Antonio Barrera-V-Erik Morales 1. Despite his lack of pro experience it was a great chance for Martinez. It proved to be to soon for him and he was dually stopped in the seventh. Not one to be perturbed he was back in the ring 2 months later and remained active and winning the Argentinean Welterweight title the following year. He moved to Europe in 2002 and after 3 fights in Britain he bided his time with several stay busy fights until he caught the attention of promoter Lou DiBella who brought him to America in 2007 where he won a WBC eliminator at Light Middleweight. Over the next year he stayed active though couldn’t force a fight with then champion Vernon Forrest. In October 2008 he fought Alex Bunema for the WBC 154 Interim Championship, it proved to be a coming out party when he stopped Bunema in the eighth round. In 2009 his star rose higher in two fights even though he won neither…officially. First came Kermit Cintron in the February, Cintron was down and out in the seventh. Inexplicably Frank Santore Jr. allowed the fight to continue. When Martinez appeared to of done enough to of won but again was foiled this time by two of the judges who scored the fight a draw. When the much anticipated Kelly Pavlik-Paul Williams fell out for the umpteenth time Martinez got his chance and faced Paul Williams up at Middleweight. In one of the fights of the year both guys put it all on the line and though many ringside thought “Maravilla” had done enough to take the fight he was again taken away from him by the judges. Leaving Williams to take the majority decision. After a break when Martinez went on a cruise before Christmas he got the call to fight Pavlik for the titles. It provides Martinez with his ultimate opportunity, if he can take this one it’ll go along way to undoing the two wrong’s in his mind from last year.
Hello Sergio, welcome to 15rounds.com
Anson Wainwright – I believe you will be fighting Kelly Pavlik on 17 April In Atlantic City. That looks a tremendous fight. How do you see it? What do you see as Pavlik’s strengths and weaknesses?
Sergio Martinez – I think it will be a great fight; it can be a tremendous battle as I had with Paul Williams. Kelly Pavlik is a big puncher with a lot of power. He has an explosive right hand and I will have to take all precautions to avoid it. I see few weaknesses in Pavlik, but the few that he has I will exploit. In a few days my team and I will begin to discuss Pavlik’s past performances and set up a game plan to beat him.
Anson Wainwright – Last year your profile increased though you didn’t win either fight. First you drew with Kermit Cintron then lost a majority decision against Paul Williams. Looking back how do you see both of those fights now?
Sergio Martinez – For the Cintron fight he waited for me to attack and tried countering me all night; he needed to do more to win my world title… the ruling was an embarrassment to boxing, first to cancel my KO in the 7th round and then giving me a draw.
In the Paul Williams fight we both laid down all our cards in the ring, when you get two great competitors like that you get a classic fight. It was a close fight and we both wanted a victory that night but, I believe I was the better fighter that night. How can we forget that horrible judges score card (Mr. Benoist) giving me only one round the whole entire fight, WOW!! That’s was crazy.
Anson Wainwright – You were 35 on 21 February but seem to have become a better fighter with age. What do you put this down too?
Sergio Martinez – Personally, I believe I am in the best shape of my life. As I have gotten older I notice that my fitness has improved and my boxing has quantum leaped. I always knew to have success in this sport you need to be fully committed, disciplined, and have a relentless preparation program. I guess all my learning experiences and pitfalls has brought me to this point of my life which means that today I am entering the prime of my career.
Anson Wainwright – How do you feel fighting at Middleweight last time out? Do you intend to go back to 154 or are you a Middleweight from now on?
Sergio Martinez – I feel really good fighting at Middleweight; I need to continue training hard to maintain my muscle mass to keep my strength at middleweight. Not sure wants going to happen after April 17th my managers, my team, and I will evaluate my options I have for my future after the fight.
Anson Wainwright – I believe you live in Spain now? What made you decide to leave your homeland of Argentina to live in Spain? Do you get recognised in Madrid by people or are you relatively unknown?
Sergio Martinez – In the year 2002, I decided to migrate to Europe. Due to the bad economy in Argentina I went to Spain for work and boxing and decided to stay. I am not very popular in Spain because boxing is not as popular as other sports like soccer. I currently live in Oxnard, California which I love but it’s very different and low key.
Anson Wainwright – Can you tell us about the team that you have around you. Who is your manager, trainer & promoter? Also what gym do you use to get ready for a fight?
Sergio Martinez – My team is Lou Dibella (promoter), Sampson Lewkowicz (matchmaker), Ricardo Atocha (manager), Juan Leon Diaz (coach), Cicilio Flores (2nd), and Daniel Sanchez (2nd). I do all my preparations and conditioning at World Crown Sports Training Centre located in Oxnard, CA.
Anson Wainwright – Your from Buenos Aires originally, can you tell us about how life was in your early years and how it took you towards a career in Boxing?
Sergio Martinez – I grew up in a very humble home in a low poverty neighbourhood. At age 14 I started working because the economic situation at home was like any poor family. At age 20 I started to box, my first day at a boxing gym was the May 2, 1995 I tried it once and I was hooked, I have not stopped ever since.
Anson Wainwright – When you’re not boxing what do you like to do with your spare time?
Sergio Martinez – If I am not in California training or relaxing I am in Spain hanging out with friends and family. One of my greatest pleasures in my life is to travel the world and get to visit different countries and meet new people. I try to visit my family in my country Argentina as much as possible. I am constantly moving and staying active. I never stop training; I like to stay in shape all year round.
Anson Wainwright – Looking back at the Antonio Margarito fight in 2000 do you think he was loading his gloves back then or was it just a bad night at the office?
Sergio Martinez – The night of February 19, 2000 when I fought Margarito, I did not think he had his gloves loaded. He was the better fighter that night and he was better prepared than I was. I have no regrets and it was early in my career; I have become a better fighter because of it.
Anson Wainwright – When you retire from Boxing do you intend to still be involved with the sport in some capacity or do you have other business venture’s? If so what?
Sergio Martinez – I am 100% focused in my boxing career; I am taking it one step at a time right now.
Anson Wainwright – Who was your Boxing hero?
Sergio Martinez – Muhammad Ali and Carlos Monzon.
Anson Wainwright – Do you have a message for Pavlik & your fans ahead of the fight?
Sergio Martinez – First, I would like to thank Kelly Pavlik for giving me the opportunity to fight for his titles. It is an honour to confront a great champion that he is. He is considered by many to be the best in the world and it only makes sense for me to fight the best.
I also want to thank my fans for their loyalty, their support and I promise another great performance the night of April 17th in Atlantic City NJ. I want to send a big hello to my family and friends back home in Argentina. This is my best training camp ever, I feel great, and I can’t wait till fight night.
Thanks for your time Maravilla
Thank you very much, Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez
Anson Wainwright
KELLY PAVLIK TO DEFEND HIS TITLES AGAINST SERGIO MARTINEZ, LIVE ON HBO, SATURDAY, APRIL 17, at BOARDWALK HALL
ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (February 20, 2010) – World Middleweight Champion KELLY “The Ghost” PAVLIK returns to Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall on Saturday, April 17 to defend his titles against World Boxing Council (WBC) super welterweight champion SERGIO “Maravilla” MARTINEZ. Promoted by Top Rank, in association with DiBella Entertainment and Caesars Atlantic City, Pavlik vs. Martinez will be broadcast live on HBO World Championship Boxing, beginning at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.
Tickets, priced at $350, $200, $100 and $50, go on sale This Monday! February 22nd at Noon ET and can be purchased at the Boardwalk Hall box office, by calling Ticketmaster (800) 736-1420 or online at www.Ticketmaster.com.
Pavlik (36-1, 32 KOs), who over two years ago, in a near sold-out Boardwalk Hall which included thousands making the trek from his hometown of Youngstown, OH, became World Boxing Organization (WBO) and the World Boxing Council (WBC) world champion by knocking out the previously undefeated and undisputed middleweight champion Jermain Taylor in a bout selected as the “Fight of the Year” by the Boxing Writers Association of America. Pavlik defeated Taylor handily in their rematch in February 2008 to solidify his claim as one of boxing’s top pound for pound fighters and has since had three successful defenses, all by knockout, two of the wins coming against No. 1 contenders and mandatory challengers.
Martinez (44-2-2, 24 KOs), a native of Argentina who fights out of Madrid, Spain, first made his presence known to the boxing world in 2007 by knocking out Saul Roman (27-2) in the fourth round of their WBC super welterweight title elimination bout. One year later, Martinez captured the WBC interim super welterweight title with an eighth-round stoppage of Alex Bunema. He was elevated to WBC world super welterweight champion in the latter half of 2009. In his last fight, he lost a highly-disputed 12-round majority decision to former world champions Paul Williams, in a non-title middleweight bout, ending Martinez’s 10-year, 29-bout unbeaten streak.
In pursuit of an unbiased look at Kelly Pavlik
By Bart Barry
Wednesday brought some good news about Kelly Pavlik. All is ready but the contracts for Pavlik to defend his middleweight championship in April against Sergio Martinez. It isn’t the rematch we wanted for Martinez after his fantastic fight with Paul Williams two months ago, but it’s better than any match we’ve seen Pavlik make since Bernard Hopkins in 2008.
It’s also an occasion for examining personal bias, something I’ve wanted to do for a while. The last three years in the boxing gym – privy to arguments between numerous ethnicities and nationalities – have seen me play a role like neutral solon. When a Filipino and a Mexican argue about who won Pacquiao-Marquez II, I’m the tiebreaker, in other words, chastening both for ethnic bias.
But observing’s not as much fun as participating. That’s why I promised the next time a prizefighter who looked like me and came from my country was in a major fight, I’d do an examination of conscience – as the Xaverian brothers at St. John’s High School used to put it.
Kelly Pavlik meets those criteria. What follows, then, is a good-faith effort to better understand why we cheer the fighters we cheer, and where to draw a sensible line for cheering against others.
Folks who put on gloves and headgear tend to cheer fighters according to this hierarchy: 1. Race, 2. Fighting style, 3. Nationality, 4. Personality. This is supposed to be the post-racial world of 2010, I know, so if it makes things more palatable, go ahead and attribute our fixation on race to the forum in which it appears: We routinely get punched in the head.
As a white man in a country led by a black man, I’m now able to enjoy some newfound liberty. I think cheering for someone because he shares your race does not make you a racist. Cheering against someone because he does not share your race, though, may be something you shouldn’t do.
In an important essay about the need for affirmative action, written 23 years ago and subtitled “Reckoning with Unconscious Racism,” Professor Charles Lawrence made a thought-provoking case that anticipated a day when all racism was unconscious. Those of you who’ve suffered through some form of corporate diversity training are surely rolling your eyes right now, saying, “‘Unconscious racism’! Where does it end?”
Point taken. But consider: When the CEO of a Fortune 500 company acts ethically in the task of choosing his replacement, what qualities does he look for? After all, he’s done a fine job for the shareholders, and it’s his professional obligation to find someone who’ll do the same.
Acting in the best interests of his employer, then, he’ll select someone who reminds him of himself. That’s why there aren’t many latina women leading Fortune 500 companies. They’re not all less-qualified. Their predecessors aren’t racists. And yet the boardroom remains monochrome.
Two points, there, pertaining to prizefighting. First, we don’t need to be racists to cheer guys who remind us of ourselves. Second, we do need to be conscious of this predisposition before having our shoulders measured for that cloak of objectivity. That’s true for all sports fans, of course, but boxing, for all the criticism we accept, has always treated ethnic bias more openly than our peers; we expect more honesty from ourselves as fans.
Kelly Pavlik is white like me. He fights in the simple way – jab, hook, cross – that appeals to someone with my slower reflexes. He’s an American. He never belittles an opponent.
That role of the neutral solon I play in the gym? It partially reduces to my people not having a very impressive run in boxing these last 25 years.
That’s also the reason I feel an initial spark of interest about Pavlik that I don’t feel when I hear about Sergio Martinez or Paul Williams. After I think about Martinez or Williams matching up against Pavlik, I might well favor them or even cheer them against Pavlik. But that happens afterwards, and consciously.
What fearlessness I have in wandering about this minefield of bad faith and ruined reputation comes courtesy of Shannon Briggs. Before his 2006 fight with Sergei Liakhovich in Phoenix, Briggs called himself the “Great Black Hope” – in contrast to all the Eurasian heavyweight champions at the time. Intoxicated by a chance to represent his people, Briggs also made allegations of racism at the Liakhovich camp.
How much did this bother a Belarusian making a first title defense in his adopted hometown? In the post-fight press conference, after he’d lost his WBO belt in the fight’s final second, Liakhovich brought it up almost immediately. He turned to Briggs and said, in broken English, he wanted everyone to know he’d never said anything derogatory about black Americans.
Briggs said, “I know.” Then he explained it was just a ruse to sell the fight and get in Liakhovich’s head. Don King cackled away. Liakhovich looked more relieved than offended. And I promised myself I’d never be called a racist and take it seriously again.
Still, voluntary examinations of conscience can’t hurt, especially when I cheer against people.
I cheered against Fernando Vargas when he fought Oscar De La Hoya, but obviously not because he was latino. I’ll cheer against Floyd Mayweather when he fights Shane Mosley, but obviously not because he’s black. I’ll cheer against Wladimir Klitschko when he fights Eddie Chambers, though I can’t imagine it’s because he’s white.
I don’t like the personalities of Vargas or Mayweather, or the fighting style of Klitschko.
I’ll cheer for whomever I wish, then, for whatever reason – and that will probably mean Kelly Pavlik. But when I cheer against someone, I’ll do my best to ensure it’s not for ethnic reasons. I think that’s about as much as we can ask of ourselves.
Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter.com/bartbarry
Pavlik – Martinez is on for April 17 in Atlantic City
According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, world Middleweight champion, Kelly Pavlik will defend his crwon against Jr. Middleweight champion Sergio Martinez on April 17th in Atlantic City and will be televised by HBO.
“We’re waiting for Lou [DiBella, Martinez's promoter] to send back the contract, which he said there are no problems with,” said Top Rank’s Bob Arum, Pavlik’s promoter. “Kelly is on board and we’re planning a press conference in New York, but HBO wanted us to hold off until after the Olympics. But the fight is agreed to. We’re good on our side and Lou tells me it’s good to go on his side. We’re putting off the press conference strictly because of the Olympics.”
“It’s a great Atlantic City fight, especially with Williams-Martinez having just taken place there and Pavlik being the most proven attraction there in the post-[Arturo] Gatti era,” DiBella said.
“It’s a terrific fight and I think Kelly is going to win, but we know this is a very tough fight,” Said Bob Arumn who promotes Pavlik.”But I think that Kelly has the firepower to come through and win the fight.” Pavlik, who is 6-foot-2, is the naturally bigger and stronger fighter compared to the 5-11 Martinez, 34, who is a southpaw and faster.
“Sergio Martinez is the best 154-pound fighter in the world, but he simply could not turn down an opportunity to take on the true middleweight champion of the world,” DiBella said. “While size is not his advantage, speed is, and sometimes David slays Goliath. We had to bite the bullet a little bit, but it’s a great opportunity even though it is above the weight where Sergio prefers to fight. But he didn’t do so badly at middleweight against Williams did he? We all know that a lot of people thought Sergio won that fight. At some point, he’d like to move down and fight in his own weight class, but this is a big opportunity for him.”
“There are no substantive issues on the paperwork between me and Arum,” DiBella said. “The only issue that exists is that Kelly has had some health issues and I want to know that if Sergio trains for the fight and Kelly is forced to pull out for some reason that Sergio would able to fight another opponent we agree on in Montreal on the Bute undercard.
“If something happens and Kelly’s staph infection comes back or he has another problem with his hand, we want to be able to fight somebody else on that date. My guy can’t have another long layoff. But there is no issue about anything between me and Bob. I just need to get this worked out with HBO, but I don’t think it is going to be an issue.”
Pavlik, 36-1 with thirty-two knockouts and Martinez will compete in a bout for which HBO will be televising another fight from Montreal featuring IBF Super Middleweight champion Lucian Bute defending against Edison Miranda.
These two bout could be the groundwork for a possible Bute-Pavlik fight later in 2010 should both champions retain their titles.
MARTINEZ: “I PLAN ON BEING WBC CHAMPION FOR A LONG TIME!!!”
January 11, 2010) With rumors swirling about what will be happening with the WBC 154 lb. title, champion Sergio Martinez has come out to set the record straight. In short, despite the wishes of some to become champion without having to go through “Maravilla”, Martinez has no plans on relinquishing the belt anytime soon.
“Everyone who knows me knows that I cherish the green belt more than any other accomplishment I’ve ever had in boxing,” said Martinez. “If people are looking for an excuse to become champion without fighting me, I have bad news for them. I plan on being WBC Champion for a long time.”
As for future plans, Martinez is gung-ho about chasing down the big name fights that had eluded him prior to his December 5 slugfest with Paul Williams. But even a move up to middleweight for a bout with Kelly Pavlik or a rematch with Williams will have no bearing on his standing as WBC champion.
“I know I may have to move up in weight to fight Pavlik or Williams,” said Martinez. “But I will not make any decision on the belt until after the fight.”
Pavlik – Martinez in the works?
By Anson Wainwright
Negotiations are moving ahead to make a Kelly Pavlik-Sergio Martinez fight this May. While they are still at the early stages it seems as though Martinez hot off a disputed loss to Paul Williams could challenge Pavlik for his WBC/WBO Middleweight crown.
It appears as though it would happen in Atlantic City where Pavlik is extremely popular and Martinez fought last time out.
Martinez agent Sampson Lewkowicz told 15rounds.com that “It’s and Exciting fight that people want to see” He also added that they had an offer to fight the rematch with Paul Williams but preferred to get his man a straight title shot. He also said he is requesting WBC approved judges.
So finally it appears that things are getting back to normal in the Boxing world after being held hostage regarding the on off on and finally off negotiations between Floyd Mayweather & Manny Pacquiao.
Why we watch the fights
By Bart Barry
Maybe it wasn’t the best fight of the year, or maybe it was. What Paul Williams and Sergio Martinez did Saturday, though, deserves an award of some sort. How about favorite fight of the year? The one that, when considered as a 36-minute body of work, brings back the most complete feelings of satisfaction to those who saw it.
The best part? On paper, it wasn’t supposed to be that good. An underappreciated black American volume puncher from Georgia and a barely known Argentinean southpaw from Spain, fighting on short notice, before fewer than 2,000 paying customers in New Jersey. Go ahead and try to sell that mess.
Yet it was magic. The rematch will sell itself.
Saturday in Atlantic City, Williams and Martinez battled for no title whatever in a middleweight match that Williams ultimately won by majority-decision scores of 114-114, 115-113 and 119-110. It was a fight cobbled together after middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik, citing a staph infection, broke two contracts with Williams – the owner of boxing’s least-desired title, “Most Avoided Fighter.”
The fight was very close; scorekeepers needed to check their biases throughout. Judge Pierre Benoist did nothing of the sort, 119-110. He should be made to account for his card, even if the accounting comprises only a statement like: “Each round was tight, but Williams won 1:31 of every three-minute stanza but two.” Otherwise, his 10-1-1 card retains its sinister air.
My card probably overcorrected for bias. As an unapologetic proponent of action fighters, preferring ineffective aggressiveness to everything but effective aggressiveness, I went out of my way to account for solid counterpunches. Too, I tried not to give my countryman the benefit of every doubt.
I had it 115-114 for Martinez. Rounds 2, 3, 7, 8, 10 and 11 went to him. Rounds 4, 5, 6, 9 and 12 went to Williams. The first round, which saw each man felled once, I scored even, 10-10.
That’s that. Now I quietly close the Scorecard.xls file on my laptop and set about the task of honoring Williams-Martinez. For like so many things boxing officials do, Saturday’s judging is less than a footnote. The fight itself was a treat. So what if the genuine tension ceased at the final bell?
It almost ceased moments after the opening bell, didn’t it? Williams came out ferocious as he’s been since Carlos Quintana. He looked much taller than 6 foot 2, and Martinez looked like a gladiator fleeing a lion. A Williams left cross, thrown from his gangly southpaw stance, bounced off Martinez’s lead right shoulder (southpaw as well) and skipped off his temple, compromising his balance and shoving him to the canvas. Martinez quickly stood, composed.
Williams was not. He attacked like Robitussin on a cough – as Big Daddy Kane once put it. He closed all sorts of space, got way over his front foot, razed his advantage of stature and ran into a right hook. Down went Williams. Not from a balance shot but a punch consequential enough to undo the preceding 2:58 and a knockdown.
Judge Benoist actually got this round right, scoring it even while his companions saw it 10-9 for Williams. Benoist got the next round right, too, scoring it 10-9 for Martinez. Then Benoist decided to show empathy to Texas judge Gale Van Hoy – deserving a transitive verb of his own if only we could be sure of how to conjugate “to Benoist.”
After flattening Williams at the end of the first round, Martinez went sweet scientist for the next six minutes. With excellent advice from his corner, he used a visual trick on Williams. Martinez drew his hands in. Williams’ punches, a perfect length in the beginning, were suddenly wrong. They were too short. Then Williams recalibrated his cross by lowering his left glove. Then Martinez pasted him with right hooks over his lowered guard. Martinez couldn’t miss.
So Williams put the ‘will’ in P-Will. Blood running into both eyes, his hapless corner fixating on why-didn’t-you’s instead of next-time-do’s, or cuts, Williams trusted his size and conditioning and just kept stalking his emboldened foe. Williams was not accurate. His defense was suspect, chin high and hands low, but he kept faith Martinez’s fitness would not hold up.
Martinez doubted Williams’ fitness right back. That’s what made the fight special.
The best matches happen when neither guy respects the other’s power, when both guys square up and each knows the other cannot take his best shot. This was a variation on that: I know I am the only man who can sustain a pace for 12 rounds, so we’re going to do this thing, and I’m going to watch you wilt. Except neither did. Not quite.
The reason this was maybe not the best fight of the year was because it ended indecisively with two world-class fighters missing more punches than they landed. It ended with fatigue undoing class.
But it was still such a fight. Such a joy! Such a list of reasons why no one wanted to fight these guys at 154 pounds.
Afterwards, Williams’ promoter feinted at Bernard Hopkins, while Martinez’s promoter made threats about Kelly Pavlik. Forget it, guys. Hopkins would add 20 pounds to Martinez’s right hooks and land them as easily. Pavlik’s right cross on Martinez would make Williams’ left feel like a love tap. Those fights are all wrong.
A rematch is all right. Williams and Martinez deserve a bigger audience and larger purses. The rest of us deserve more enjoyment.
One last thing. By way of a preview for next week’s Diaz-Malignaggi rematch, let’s pause to acknowledge the comparative dignity of Sergio Martinez’s reaction to Saturday’s wayward scorecard. No calling-out the state of New Jersey, no “vos dije! vos dije!”, no victimhood. Just a simple “I believe it was an error.” Makes you think Madrid might be a friendlier place to live than Brooklyn.
Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter.com/bartbarry
Williams scores Majority decision Martinez in classic battle
By Marc Abrams (ringside)
Paul Williams scored a close majority decision victory over Sergio Martinez in a battle of world champions in a twelve round Middleweight fight at the Adrian Phillips Ballroom inside Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City
The fight was non-stop action from the beginning and the first round provided some serious fireworks as both fighters scored knockdowns. It Williams who struck first by landing hard left to the top of the head that sent Martinez to the deck. The knockdown seemed to be a flash one as he came back to floor Williams with a hard left at the end of the round.
Martinez continued to land hard right hooks through the third round as he continued to rock Williams. In the third he mixed it up and buckled Williams with a big left. Williams started to get it going in the middle rounds as it was his right hook and long straight left that started to make an impression on Spaniard. In round five, Williams was cut on the forehead from an accidental headbutt. the continued to trade hard shots with the only difference being that Williams was using his jab on occasion. Martinez rocked Williams in round ten from an uppercut.
Round eleven saw a toe to toe ward with both wailing away on each other with Martinez landing some hard lefts to the bloody face of Williams. Williams has a good round twelve as he finished the show by buckling Martinez with two uppercuts. the first one had Martinez holding on.
That final round mat have given Williams the fight as judge Julie Lederman scored the fight even at 1114-114 while Lynn Carter won by a 115-113 (same as 15rounds.com) and Pierre Benoist (119-110????) gave Williams the victory.
Williams, 157 lbs of Augusta, Georgia thought he would facing world Middleweight champion Kelly pavlik on this night and got alot more then he bargained for in Martinez and is now 38-1. Martinez, 159 lbs of Madrid, Spain is now 44-2-2.
Chris Arreola got back on the winning track after his title losing effort to Vitali Klitschko after he stopped Brian Minto in round four of their ten round Heavyweight bout.
The action was heated from the start as Arreola landed some hard right hands early in the fight. Minto landed some quick hard rights and was competitive in the second round. In what was one of the better heavyweight rounds in recent memory, the fourth was a fire fight that was highlighted by Arreola landing a hard four punch combination that was capped off by a booming right hand that dropped Minto to the canvas. Minto not only got up but landed some great shots in what turned into a back and forth fire fight. Arreola rocked Minto into the ropes as Minto was stumbling all around and Arreola drilled him one more time with the left hand as Minto was defenseless. Minto went down but got to his feet but referee Eddie Cotton called a halt to action at 2:40 of round four.
Arreola, 263 lbs of Riverside, CA is now 28-1 with twenty-five knockouts. Minto, 219 lbs of Butler, PA is 34-3.
Tony Thompson made a pitch to get back into Heavyweight title contention as he stopped Chazz Witherspoon in round nine of a scheduled ten round Heavyweight bout.
The fight was void of action over the first couple of rounds but Thompson was winning them as he would land the only significant blows over the first four rounds.
Over the middle rounds, Thompson would buckle Witherpsoon on several occasions but Witherpsoon would show plenty of life as he would land some overhand right’s that would back Thompson up to the ropes. In round nine, the southpaw Thompson turned orthodox and landed a hard right hook that was followed by a booming right hand that sent Witherspoon stumbling into the ropes and referee Benjy Esteves ruled a knockdown. Witherspoon tried to make a last stand but was pummeled with a hard combination along the ropes and Esteves rightfully stepped in and stopped the bout at 2:13 of round nine.
Thompson, 250 lbs of Washington, DC hopes to get back into title contention after being stopped by Wladimir Klitschko just over a year ago when he attempted to win the coveted heavyweight crown. Thompson is now 33-2 with twenty-one knockouts. Witherpsoon, 234 lbs of Philadelphia is now 26-2.
Despite suffering a second round knockdown, former Welterweight champion Carlos Quintana stopped Jesse Feliciano after a cut was opened up on Feliciano’s right eye.
Referee Randy Neumann ruled the cut was opened up by a punch at fifty-nine seconds of the third round after Quintana controlled most of the action over the three rounds other then the knockdown.
Quintana, 153 1/2 lbs of Moca, PR is now 27-2 with twenty-one knockouts. Feliciano, 152 1/2 lbs of Las Vegas is now 15-8-3
Good looking Featherweight prospect Jorge Diaz remained undefeated by scoring a stunning one-punch knockout over Luis Paneto at 2:53 of round one in their scheduled six round bout.
Diaz landed a booming over hand that sent Paneto down for the ten count. Diaz, 123 1/2 lbs of New Brunswick, NJ is now 11-0 with seven knockouts. Paneto, 121 1/2 lbs of Caguas, PR is now 5-7-2.
Jeremiah Wiggins opened up the show by scoring a six round unanimous decision over Manuel Guzman in a six round bout.
Wiggins landed the hard combination but as always Guzman was a tough customer as refused to go anywhere.
Wiggins, 151 1/2 lbs of Newport News, VA won by scores of 60-54, 59-55 and 58-56 to remain undefeated at 7-0-1. Guzman, 150 lbs of Lancaster, VA is now 6-9-2
FOLLOW WILLIAMS – MARTINEZ ; ARREOLA-MINTO LIVE FROM RINGSIDE
Follow all the action from Atlantic City’s Boardwalk hall as Paul Williams and Sergio Martinez get it on in a Middleweight battle of title holder. The action gets underway at 9:30pm Eastern/6:30 pm Pacific with a Heavyweight battle of Brawlers Chris Arreola and Brian Minto
12 Rounds-Middleweights–Paul williams (37-1, 27 KO’s) vs Sergio Martinez (44-1-2, 24 KO’s)
Round 1: Williams comes out with lots of energy and lands a right hook..Martinez lands an inside right hook…LEFT TO TOP OF HEAD AND DOWN GOES MARTINEZ…Martinez lands a hard right hook..Williams lands a left on the ropes…MARTINEZ LANDS A HARD LEFT AND DOWN GOES WILLIAMS …10-9 Martinez…
Round 2: Williams lands a right hook..Martinez lands a hard left and right…Hard jab…Martinez wings a right hook..Williams walks right into another left…Williams lands a right hook inside…20-18 Martinez…
Round 3: Williams lands a hard body shot..Hard right hook from Martinez..Leaping right hook from Williams…Counter Jab from Martinez..2 big lefts buckle Williams…Williams lands a left..Right hook from Martinez..Hard right from Williams at the bell…30-27 Martinez
Round 4: Martinez lands ahard right..Martinez with a flush right..Mauling and punching..Jab from Martinez…Counter left from Martinez..toe to toe action as Williams lands a hard left…Big left from Williams…Martinez lands a left in tight…Big left from williams…39-37 Martinez
Round 5: 2 Huge right hooks and straight left from Williams…Tight hook..BIG left from Martinez..Williams Lands…Hard left from Martinez…Williams lands a huge tight hook…48-47 Williams…Williams cut on the forehead as a result of a headbutt
Round 6: Williams lands a counter left…Jab from Martinez..Right hook from Williams…Williams landing little shots inside…57-57
Round 7: Hard jab from Williams…right from Martinez…Williams lands a hard 2 hook combination.. Right hook from Martinez.. Double jab from Williams…Right from Martinez..67-66 Williams…
Round 8: Williams lands a hard double jab/straight left combo…Hard uppercut from martinez that backs Williams up..77-75 Williams…
Round 9: Right hook inside from Williams… jab…Double jab…jab…Martinez lands a double right hook…87-84 Williams
Round 10: Martinez lands a right hook that rocks Willams and then a booming left…Williams lands a right and martinez counters with a jab…96-94 Williams
Round 11: Martinez a little over hand left…Counter left from Williams…Trading hard shots with Martinez landing a hard left…2 hard left and Williams firing back..Williams bleeding from the right eye..Martinez landed a left at the belll105-104 Williams
Round 12:m Williams lands a hard uppercut that has Martinez holding on..Uppercut buckles Martinez..straight left from Martinez…115-113 Williams..
MAJORITY DECISION….114-114; 115-113; 119-110–PAUL WILLIAMS
10 ROUNDS HEAVYWEIGHTS–CHRIS ARREOLA (27-1, 24 KO’S) VS BRIAN MINTO (34-2, 21 KO’S)
ROUND 1: Arreola lands a left that drives Minto back…Right over top buckles Minto…Hard right from Arreola…10-9 Arreola
Round 2: Minto lands a left as Arreola answers with a hard right…action picking up..Right from Minto..Minto tries to go to the body ..Arreola hard right cross…Quick right from Minto..Minto counter right..Arreola a right..and 2 more rights at the bell…20-19 Arreola
Round 3: Arreola lands a right to the top of head…Hard jab…30-28 Arreola
Round 4: Trading hard shots on the ropes as Minto lands a hard right uppercut…HRAD 4 PUNCH COMBINATION THAT IS FINISHED UP BY A RIGHT TO THE JAW AND DOWN GOES MINTO….A great Brawl is breaking out with Minto landing some hard shits as well as Arreola…Some HARD SHOTS ROCK MINTO AS HE STAGGERS INTO THE ROPES AND DOWN HE GOES AFTER ARREOLA LANDS A HUGE LEFT…MINTO IS GROGGY ON HIS FEET AND REFEREE EDDIE COTTON STOPS THE FIGHT
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- Manny Pacquiao overwhelms Joshua Clottey, wins unanimous decision March 14, 2010
