By Keith Idec
Paul Williams isn’t interested in fighting the southpaw who seemingly did more than enough to out-point Williams in his last fight.
Williams does, however, want another shot at the man who definitely defeated him in their rematch nearly 15 months ago in Atlantic City.
“Of course,” Williams said when asked if he’s seeking a third fight against Sergio Martinez. “You know that. Everybody knows that. It’s do he want a piece?”
Williams blames Martinez and his handlers for their rubber match not materializing.
“We’ve been trying to make that fight between me and Martinez,” Williams said. “It is what it is. You’ll probably have to ask them why it hasn’t happened. I’m sure Mr. [George] Peterson [Williams’ trainer] and [adviser] Al Haymon have been trying to make it happen. They already know I’ll definitely fight. If it’s on, well OK, it’s on. Let’s fight. You have to ask his people why it hasn’t happened.”
The 30-year-old Williams’ career hasn’t been the same since Martinez (48-2-2, 27 KOs) knocked him unconscious with a devastating left hand in the second round of their rematch. The Augusta, Ga., native struggled in his only fight since losing the Martinez rematch, but still was awarded a controversial, 12-round majority decision victory over Cuba’s Erislandy Lara (15-1-1, 10 KOs) on July 9 at Boardwalk Hall’s Adrian Phillips Ballroom.
The former WBO welterweight and junior middleweight champion knows fight fans are still writing him off after his last two performances, but Williams (41-2, 27 KOs) returned on Saturday night with a workman-like effort against Japan’s Nobuhiro Ishida (24-7-2, 9 KOs). Williams won a twelve round unanimous decision in a junior middleweight fight at American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas.
Keith Idec covers boxing for The Record and Herald News, of Woodland Park, N.J., and BoxingScene.com.
