Salido-Martinez: BoxingScene.com's Staff Predictions

by Jake Donovan

Orlando Salido looks to go 3-0 in Puerto Rico, as the veteran road warriors faces Roman ‘Rocky’ Martinez in the first defense of his junior lightweight belt Saturday evening in the capital city of San Juan.

Both fighters made weight for their Pay-Per-View headliner. Salido was a shade under the 130 lb. divisional limit, coming in at 129.9 lbs. Martinez weighed 129.3 lbs. for his second fight back since losing the title that is now around Salido’s waist and at stake in this bout.

Salido (42-12-2, 29KOs) picked up the vacant title with a rousing 11th round knockout win over Terdsak Kokietgym last September. The Fight of the Year entrant featured seven knockdowns on the night, with Salido recovering from being floored three times to score four of his own in ultimately stopping the determined Thai veteran.

The win earned Salido his fourth major title in a career that once never seemed destined for glory. A three-time featherweight titlist, the 34-year old from Mexico finally outgrew the division in missing weight for his eventual split decision win over two-time Olympic Gold medalist Vasyl Lomachenko last March. The win was his last official scheduled bout at featherweight after spending more than a decade as a contender and titlist.

Martinez (28-2-2, 17KOs) seeks a third title reign at 130 lbs. The talented Boricua saw his title reigns come to an end with defeats to Ricky Burns and Mikey Garcia on separate occasions. The latter defeat prompted a ring hiatus, spending more than a year on the sidelines before returning with a stay-busy win last December.

The card will air live on DirecTV Pay-Per-View. Read on to see how the staff at BoxingScene.com believes the junior lightweight action plays out.

BOXINGSCENE.COM STAFF PREDICTIONS: ORLANDO SALIDO vs. ROMAN MARTINE

Ryan Burton (Salido SD): Salido is shop worn but I believe he has enough left in the tank to squeak out a split decision in a fight in which both men hit the canvas.

Jake Donovan (Salido Dec.): Martinez is definitely a live ‘dog here. Make no mistake, Salido has bravery for days (in addition to success in Puerto Rico), but has long ago seen his best days. Tempted to go with the local boxer to reclaim his old crown, but believe Salido will find a way to pull out a close but clear decision.

Lyle Fitzsimmons (Salido Dec.): If there’s been a 12-loss fighter better than Salido in a generation, you’d be hard-pressed to find him. Martinez is no joke, but his Mexico foe can out-rugged almost everyone.

John MacDonald (Salido late TKO): This may be the best fight of the weekend. Salido has more miles on the clock but has the better skill set. The Mexican may have to climb of the canvass but I can see him sending the Puerto Rican crowd home upset once more.

Takahiro Onaga (Salido TKO8): Salido wins battle of shopworn gun slingers.

Cliff Rold (Salido KO): Salido is more experienced and probably has less wear on him. This should be fun, but very one-sided after the first couple rounds.

Victor Salazar (Martinez Dec.): The Puerto Rican conqueror Salido tries his hand to keep the name bestowed upon him. Rocky Martinez can crack but can he crack enough to keep Salido off him? Salido looked a little less of himself in his last bout which was a fight of the year contender against Terdsak Kokietgym . Is Rocky the fresher of the two? I think so. I think this fight will be a war with Martinez outlasting Salido by decision.

Reynaldo Sanchez (Salido TKO6): Rocky in my opinion have the skills and the power to beat Salido at this weight.

Alexey Sukachev (Salido KO11): It all comes to a question of who is a more washed-up fighter of this duo. In my opinion, it's certainly Matinez, who was stopped harder by Garcia than Salido. This time he will get more room for his punches, but he isn't a puncher, and his chin isn't as sturdy as Orlando's. Saildo with a kayoi in an all-action fight, closer to its end.a close fight.”

Stacey Verbeek (Salido Dec.): Salido is in shape, on weight and seems to be very focused and relaxed for this fight. Combine that with the fact that fighting in PR seems to bring out his superpowers, Salido will prevail in a bloody, brawling battle with both fighters giving their all to the end, but the more experienced, more motivated Salido landing the more powerful punches.

Totals:

Salido–9

Martinez–1

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox