On March 17th Britain’s Matthew Macklin earns a deserved tilt at former “proper” WBC middleweight champion Sergio Martinez at Madison Square Garden. Macklin, 28-3, 19 KO’s, dropped a contentious decision to WBA champ Felix Sturm last time out, but was largely felt to have been robbed on the German title-holders home soil.
When the Macklin-Martinez match was originally proposed Martinez’ title was up for grabs, but of course since then he’s admirably turned his back on the increasingly ridiculous WBC after the organisation stitched him over a promised fight with their cash-cow Julio Cesar Chavez Jnr. Martinez, 48-2-1, 27 KO’s, tossed his belt in the trash, and so it would appear that Macklin won’t be fighting for the world title he desperately wants. The Englishman seems undeterred however, and told British newspaper, The Daily Express, that he expects to go one further than compatriot Darren Barker, who gave the Argentine plenty of trouble back in October before succumbing in the eleventh round:
“I’ve started training already and by March 17th I’ll be in the best shape of my career. This is my big chance. I have the utmost respect for Martinez and he is one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world today, but I’m bigger than him and stronger. I don’t think he’s a natural middleweight. I think he’s more of a light-middle, whereas I am big for the division. He may be able to beat me on speed, but I think when he feels how powerful I am he will get a surprise”, said Macklin.
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