Sergio Martinez is reportedly close to signing on for a fight with Miguel Cotto on June 7th at Madison Square Garden, which will mark more than a year's absence from the ring for "Maravilla."
If he manages to get by Cotto, no sure task, there might be a monster waiting for him later in the year that could be difficult to avoid. Boxing's reigning knockout king, Gennady "GGG" Golovkin, has been one of the sport's busiest champions.
He fought four times in 2013, winning all four via knockout, and has stopped 16 straight opponents. 2014 figures to be another active year for the feared slugger; he's already taken on Osumanu Adama in Monte Carlo, defeating him via seventh-round TKO. Following the fight, GGG declared he's tired of being ducked.
Yes, absolutely I can beat Sergio, I want. I want this fight. It's brilliant," he said. "I want to fight Sergio Martinez to prove who is the best middleweight."
Golovkin said he felt very good following the Adama fight, and hasn't shown any wear and tear from fighting so frequently. "I feel terrific, I'm very happy with my performance," Golovkin said.
"From the opening round I was comfortable with the fight and felt very good about my power and the pace of the fight. He was a tough opponent but I was never hurt during the fight."
Golovkin is likely far from Martinez's mind at the moment though. Cotto is formidable in his own right, a vicious body puncher that is dangerous despite moving up in weight. Cotto is also not yet signed as the opponent in June.
Martinez is talking as if the fight is a sure thing, however, offering up a healthy dose of trash talk in January.
"He should never forget that I'm the champion. He has a lot of demands but I'm the champion. I'll say it, I don't think that he'll last five rounds. I would like to fight Cotto, but he is showing signs that he doesn't want to (fight), by asking for complicated conditions and he does not respect boxing history. I'm ready to knock Cotto out in five or six rounds and I know I will. He can not resist me. Disrespecting me is a very unfortunate thing. He should not forget that I'm the champion," Martinez said.
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