Sergio Gabriel Martinez - Right Hook Anyone?

Sergio Gabriel Martinez was born in 1975, and his first trade work was in the field that his father worked, as a metal and construction worker. Martinez was athletic in various sports and didn't decide to become a boxer until 1995. He was trained by his uncle, and his amateur record was 39-2.

Martinez broke his left hand in 1996, keeping him from effectively competing for his native Argentina in the 2000 Olympics. He would decide to turn professional instead. His first professional bout was in 1997, and his opponent was disqualified in only the second round. His first 17 fights resulted in a 16-0-1 record. His one blemish would result in a rematch against Mario Javier Nieva, which Martinez won.

Martinez won the Interim WBC Light Middleweight Championship in 2008 by defeating Alex Bunema. In 2009, the acting champion in the weight class was stripped of the title because of an injury that would not allow him to fight, so Martinez was upped from interim to full title status in the WBC.

As a middleweight, Martinez lost to Paul Williams and challenged the World Middleweight Champion at that time, Kelly Pavlik. Martinez would defeat Pavlik in a unanimous decision. Because of this win, Martinez earned the Middleweight Championship of not only the WBC, but also of the WBO and The Ring magazine.

Since Martinez could not hold titles in two weight classes at the same time, he was stripped of the WBO title when he did not announce which championship he would prefer to hold. He did notify the WBC that he would keep their Middleweight belt and vacate the Light Middleweight title.

In 2010, Martinez fought Paul Williams again. It was anticipated to be a world-class fight, but Martinez knocked Williams out in the second round, and retained his title. He also fought the undefeated Sergiv Dzinziruk in 2011, where he won by TKO in the eighth round. He actually knocked the champion down a total of five times during the fight, clearly dominating him.

In October of 2011, Martinez fought Darren Barker in Atlantic City. Barker was previously undefeated, and held the EBU Middleweight Championship title. Barker gave Martinez more than he bargained for, including a bloody nose, but Martinez knocked him out in the 11th round. The WBC announced that Martinez will fight Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr., on a date to be determined.

Sergio Martinez defended his title from The Ring successfully in March of 2012. He fought Ireland's Matthew Macklin, in New York City at Madison Square Garden. Martinez knocked down Macklin twice in the eleventh round, and Macklin's corner stopped the fight just before the beginning of the 12th round.

Martinez has been known as an athletic and speedy fighter, and his style pleases crowds with its dominance and speed. He does keep his hands down when he's not in an opponent's range, which gives him a look of arrogance. His right hook is generally regarded as his best weapon, and he developed this skill when he hurt his left hand as an amateur.

Tom Rankers writes about fight promoters and boxers from around the world plus other sports as well.