Martinez stops Macklin at the end of the 11th round- Sometimes fighters, well athletes in general tend to train down to the level of their opposition. So is that what happened last night when Sergio Martinez took a little longer than expected to stop the rugged Matthew Macklin? It?s hard to really say but the thought is definitely chilling in my head. The same thing seemed to have happened when Martinez faced Barker, and really, I see the exact same thing happening if Martinez continues to face these lesser known fighters. It?s hard to get up for a Mackilin when deep down you know that you should be getting up for a Cotto or a Mayweather. But Martinez can only blame himself for sticking with DiBella. This is simply just my opinion, but I strongly feel that DiBella simply does not do a good enough job at lobbying for the best fighter on his stable.
Martinez is simply always having to be placed in an uphill battle, and even though Martinez keeps winning, at the end of it all, Martinez is really losing. Had Martinez knocked out Macklin inside 6 rounds, most of the fans out there would have said, yeah yeah so what, Martinez knocked out another bum. Sometimes when you win, you really lose, and vice versa. Simply look at Martinez?s performances against bigger names like Paul Williams and Kelly Pavlik, big difference not just in Maravillas fight attitude but you can see an even bigger difference in the feedback. Martinez needs to be placed across a Cotto or a Mayweather in order for him to really get up.
It happens to everyone, look at Mayweather/Baldomir and compare that to Mayweather/Hatton or Mayweather/Ortiz. It?s hard to train with the same hard work and dedication for a lesser fighter than it is to train for a much bigger tougher fighter. I?m sure that Martinez will be able to have no problem at all finding the determination and fire to prepare for a Mayweather, that?s not to say that Martinez can beat Mayweather. I?m not saying that at all, in fact I?m sure that Mayweather would touch up Martinez plenty with right hand leads, but it must also be noted that if you think that the Martinez that showed up last night would be the same Martinez to show up for Mayweather, you are sadly mistaken.
Did you notice where Martinez?s left hand was at the start of the 10th round? It was not hanging low touching his knee, that?s for sure. One shouldn?t just look at the obvious, one should always look deeper than that. Did you notice the difference in Martinez?s fighting style once he turned it on? Well you can expect for that Martinez to be present for the entire fight when facing a Mayweather, Cotto, or even a Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Thing is that last night, Martinez did what he was supposed to do. And that was to K.O. Macklin, only real knock against it was that it came later than most expected. It?s like being on a 7th date with a girl and you are now finally getting lucky, sure it?s true that what counts here is that through all your hard work and time you are finally in, but deep down, you know very well that you should have been in it at least 2 or 3 dates ago. Hey, what can I say, I?m a gentleman. So I guess, it?s better late than never. A win is a win, or is it?
