Kiko Martinez entered tonight’s fight with defending European featherweight champ Jordan Gill saying he was going to fire his “last bullet.” Well, fire it Spain’s greatest ever fighter did, in absolutely dismantling Gill inside four bloody, knockdown-filled rounds.
Martinez, looking fresh and fast at age 36, dropped 28 year old Gill twice in round three, and twice more in the fourth round, the fourth knockdown getting “La Sensacion” the stoppage win as Gill’s corner threw in the towel just as the referee was waving the fight off. Time was 2:44. Martinez, who along with winning the European title became the IBF mandatory challenger, is now 44-11-2(31). Gill falls to 27-2-1(8).
Fighting tonight in London on the Katie Taylor card, Martinez took the fight right to the younger Gill. Martinez was relentless and the writing was on the wall alarmingly quickly. Martinez, always dangerous, soon began collecting knockdowns. Gill was down from what looked like a slip in the third, and already the young European champ was busted up around both eyes, his nose also damaged.
Things quickly got even worse for Gill, as he was dropped a second time near the end of the 3rd, this from a Kiko right uppercut. Dave Coldwell gave Gill an absolute roasting in the corner. Then came the fourth round and with it the end. Martinez, knowing he was close to closing the show, did so in ruthless fashion. Gill, looking like a bloody mess, was downed for a third time, this from another Martinez right hand. Up quickly, Gill was then blasted by a wicked left hook and he was down again.
Gill showed heart in getting up once more but this time both his corner and the referee had seen more than enough. It was yet another remarkable performance from Martinez, a fighter who can never, ever be written off.
Post-fight, Kiko called for a fight with WBA regular featherweight champ Leigh Wood. Who wouldn’t want to see that fight? And who could pick a winner with any certainty if these two do fight!
Has Martinez fired his last remaining bullets or does the Spanish gunslinger have more lead left in his two guns?