By Rick Reeno
Despite the mandates from the WBC, Diamond champion Sergio Martinez and his adviser, Sampson Lewkowicz, do not expect a 2012 showdown with full middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (43-0, 30KOs). The Mexican champion will defend his title on November 19th against Peter Manfredo Jr. at the Reliant Arena in Houston, Texas. WBC President Jose Sulaiman has ordered the winner of Chavez-Manfredo to face Martinez by March of 2012.
"We don't expect this fight to happen. We are going to wait for Chavez to vacate his title, and then Martinez becomes champion and we'll schedule a date for his first defense in early 2012," Lewkowicz told BoxingScene.com.
If the fight doesn't happen, there won't be any hard feelings from Martinez.
"I will be ringside in Houston. If he wins, I will enter the ring and he can hand me his belt. We'll shake hands and then he can walk away like a man. But, if he doesn't hand it over, then we're going to have a date in early 2012 to settle things in the ring. A true champion follows the mandates of the sanctioning body and faces his mandatories. If he doesn't want to face his mandatories, he should give up the title," Martinez said.
