Joshua Destroys Martin Edition – The Talk ‘n’ Shoot Boxing Podcast #4 is here, and in this latest edition we review the boxing action for the weekend of April 9th.
There is a new kingpin in Heavyweight boxing and that is England’s Anthony Joshua. This past Saturday night at the O2 Arena in London, Joshua knocked out American Charles Martin to claim the belt and move his record to a perfect 16-0. The fight was the main event of Eddie Hearn’s promotion and the bout aired on Sky Box Office.
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For Martin, his title reign ended just as quickly as it had come about. Last January, he became the IBF champion after beating Vyacheslav Glazkov on the undercard of Deontay Wilder’s fight with Artur Szpilka. For Martin, that fight ended in the third round as Glazkov injured his knee and could not continue. For Martin, the win left him with a target on his back. Enter Hearn, the shrewd British promoter who has been grooming Anthony Joshua as a professional fighter since he turned pro shortly after winning the Olympic Gold Medal at the London Olympics and has promised to guide him to a world title.
With this win, it will now be Joshua who has the target on his back. It will be interesting to see who Joshua fights in his first title defense. At 16-0 he is still considered to be a green fighter with a lot to learn. Learning while defending a world title belt would seem like a tall order for anyone, but Joshua is beginning to adapt a “superman” persona. Could Tyson Fury be next?
Joshua Destroys Martin Edition
Joshua and Martin were only the second biggest fight of the weekend, as Las Vegas hosted the return of Manny Pacquaio. Pac-man returned after a layoff of eleven months to face Timothy Bradley, a man he is 1-1 against.
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Pacquiao entered the fight with a lot of questions, and therefore a lot of pressure and baggage and he performed like he had never really been away. In Bradley, the boxing public had a known quantity, a fighter they knew could come close to matching Pacquiao, as he had already gone 24 rounds with him. What is more, Pac-man entered the fight at 37 years old now and having come off a right rotator cuff surgery to his shoulder. But when the fight started Pacquiao was firing the crisper, more accurate punches and he was once again showing his blazing speed.
Pac-man has stated on the record that this was going to be his last fight and that he would retire. He stuck to those statements in the post fight interviews, but many experts believe he will be coaxed back by a challenge and another payday.
Don’t forget to check out all the latest boxing talk on The Talk ‘n’ Shoot Podcast.
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