Martinez vs Cotto: Keys to Victory, Four to Explore, Official Prediction

Tonight, the collective attention of the fight public will be planted squarely on Puerto Rican warrior Miguel Cotto and his newly-found Argentinean nemesis, Super Middleweight Champion, Sergio Martinez. Although these two men will enter the ring alone when the bell sounds, they’ll both carry two proud nations on their back when they do. While the Argentinean base is thriving on the strength of a solid Matthysse victory months ago and a strong performance from Maidana; the Puerto Rican contingent will do so with a heavy dose of anxiety. The last time Miguel Cotto took center stage at the Madison Square Garden, it was a humbling defeat to Austin Trout. This time around, he has a much more dangerous foe as he attempts to make history in the deep end of the ocean. As we get closer to the first bell, we examine the chances of both men:

SERGIO MARTINEZ (KEYS TO VICTORY)

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Another Dominant Defense for WBU Champ Noah Zuhdi

Fighting in humidity that might have made the NBA Finals jealous, WBU Lightweight Champion Noah Zuhdi successfully defended his crown Friday night after challenger Eduardo Pereira dos Reis yielded to battered ribs and quit on his stool after the fourth round. The TKO victory at OKC Downtown Airpark in Oklahoma City marks Zuhdi’s second defense of the title, but perhaps more importantly, another aced test as he graduates to the upper echelon of the 135-pound class.

The roughhouse battle was not an ideal one for Zuhdi (18-1, 14 KOs) as the crafty Reis (13-2, 8 KOs) was warned but never penalized for headbutts throughout the affair. Every clinch seemed to end in controversial fashion as Reis attempted to get inside Zuhdi’s head by using his own. Undeterred, the champion and his trainer, Dickie Wood, adjusted to the uneven pace set by the challenger.

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Hugo Centeno beats Ibarra, Santana upsets Gomez

Since its inception in July 2001, ShoBox: The New Generation has produced 54 world champions, an average of more than one every four telecasts. The critically acclaimed, prospect-orientated series is also a testing ground for undefeated fighters, who frequently are matched against their toughest foes to date. Friday on SHOWTIME® from Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, Calif., two more previously unbeaten fighters lost, bringing to 120 the number of boxers who suffered their first defeats on ShoBox.

Promising middleweight Hugo “The Boss” Centeno Jr. (21-0, 11 KOs), 23, of Oxnard, Calif., kept his “O” intact, having his way en route to a lopsided 10-round decision over late-substitute Gerardo Ibarra (14-1, 8 KOs), of Houston. Previously undefeated Eddie “E Boy” Gomez (16-1, 10 KOs), of Bronx, N.Y., wasn’t so fortunate, losing an upset 10-round decision to surging Francisco “Chia” Santana (20-3-1, 7 KOs), of Santa Barbara, Calif., who won his eighth consecutive fight in a crowd-pleasing co-feature.

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Livestream: Golovkin, Geale, Jennings & Perez presser

Today at 12:30 p.m. ET, a Press Conference to officially announce the“G4” boxing extravaganza will be held in New York City. “G4” is headlined by the World Middleweight Championship between World Boxing Association “Super Champion” and International Boxing Organization Champion Golovkin and Two-Time World Champion Geale. Co-featured at “G4” is the highly anticipated 12-round World Boxing Council Heavyweight Title Eliminator between Jennings and Bryant.

Photos: “G4” Fighters Hit MSG: Golovkin, Geale, Jennings & Perez

New York City (June 7, 2014) On Friday evening in front of a huge crowd of fans, all four fighters from the upcoming “G4” boxing extravaganza hit New York City’s Madison Square Garden.

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Cotto vs. Martinez: Will Martinez float like a butterfly and sting like a bee?

When a fight like Miguel Cotto vs. Sergio Martinez is right around the corner, boxing fans brace themselves for not only a tremendous fight, but a bloody war as well.

Both fighters are thrilling, both have a burning desire for victory, and both are willing to fight each other’s fight. Having said that, there are some clear stylistic and strategic differences in both men, and I believe that it will be the style of boxing that will win this fight for Sergio Martinez.

While we all know Cotto to be an extraordinary warrior with a heart unmatched my most, he is still the type of boxer that requires there to be a brawl, or at least a few power exchanges now and then. Don’t get me wrong, he is as experienced and smart as any, but his hunger and aggression often belittles everything else.

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Sam Soliman: The Triple A Man

If any current fighter deserved to win a world title it was Sam “King” Soliman. The inspirational Australian won the IBF middleweight championship with a unanimous decision over Felix Sturm in Germany last Saturday night.

While the forty year old Soliman’s performance was convincing it was hardly surprising as the veteran has always been a remarkable Prize Fighter.

Debuting as a professional in April 1997 after going 84-11 as an amateur boxer and grinding out a successful career in the Kick Boxing Arena, Sam has always been a Triple A Man: “Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime”.

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Erik Morales: an appreciation

A report from ESPN Deportes says that Mexican fighting legend and former four-weight champion Erik Morales has decided to call it quits on his fantastic career, dispensing with a planned farewell fight in his homeland. Morales, aged 37, walks away with an incredibly hard-fought 52-9(36) record – and “El Terrible’s” induction into The Hall of Fame is an absolute certainty when the appropriate five years have passed.

Turning pro in his native Tijuana in March of 19993 when he was just 16-years-old, Morales KO’d a guy named Jose Orejel inside a couple of rounds and reportedly spent his meagre payday on chewing gum. It wasn’t long at all before the tall and skinny, long-armed super-bantamweight was fighting for titles; first Hispano and Mexican belts and then NABF and world titles.

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Video: Tyson Fury talks Chisora, Haye, Wilder, Klitschko and his Gypsy Curse

BritishBoxers.co.uk caught up with the enjoyable and entertaining Tyson Fury; the young man who is clearly working hard, thinking about his future, and is learning to have fun with the media. Tyson admits to hating press conferences, “Being lucky” in every single one of his fights, having limited skills, being scared of Dereck Chisora, and to simply “being in it for the money”. He even attributes his wins to a mysterious Gypsy Curse. And if you believe any of it, I’ve got some magic beans I want to sell you.

Tyson talks candidly (does he know any other way?) about Wladimir Klitschko not wanting to spar him, Deontay Wilder being more deserving of a world title shot than himself, and says he is up for a fight with David Haye despite a fight between the pair already falling through twice before.

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Schaefer’s split affecting Pacquiao, Marquez?

The boxing world is abuzz, and not in any way related to an upcoming fight or even a specific fighter. Richard Schaefer, the man who worked tirelessly to promote Golden Boy Promotions to the powerhouse that it is today, has left the company. Many are confused about what’s happening today, and how Al Haymon’s and Floyd Mayweather’s decisions will affect future business.

But hopefully, it’s not all bad. After all, if things work out properly, then this means that Golden Boy fighters can now take on Top Rank fighters; the kind of thing fans have been yearning for. If we assume that all the fighters we think to be Golden Boy signed are indeed Golden Boy signed (something Schaefer said was not necessarily true) and that they can peacefully agree on a TV network to fight on, where does this leave Top Rank’s two biggest fighters?

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Cotto vs. Martinez: Will Sergio punch his ticket to Canastota with a win over Miguel Cotto?

So many questions linger in the lead up for the HBO PPV battle between Miguel Cotto and Sergio Martinez broadcasting live from Madison Square Garden this Saturday night.

Will Cotto’s face hold up under constant fire from accurate combination punching of Maravilla? Can Martinez make it through a whole fight without his knee flaring up? Is Sergio Martinez’s career already Hall of Fame worthy or does he need to secure a win against Miguel Cotto to help him get over that hump?

Age is more of a factor for Sergio but physically even with Martinez’s recent string of injuries, Miguel’s fighter body may be the more shopworn of the two having engaged in many brutal wars over the years.

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