By Keith Idec
NEW YORK — Emanuel Steward wants Andy Lee to challenge Sergio Martinez in the fight after Lee’s rematch against Brian Vera on Saturday night in Atlantic City.
The Irish middleweight contender obviously has to overcome Vera before he could earn consideration as Martinez’s next opponent. But Steward is just as sure that’ll happen as he is certain Lee (26-1, 19 KOs) is a legitimate threat to Martinez (47-2-2, 26 KOs), who’ll encounter England’s Darren Barker (23-0, 14 KOs) after the Lee-Vera fight Saturday night.
“He’s got close to 30 fights, so he’s a veteran fighter now,” said Steward, who has trained Lee throughout his five-year pro career. “He’s not going to get much better, so we definitely want to fight Martinez. I think Sergio is a phenomenal fighter, and I enjoy fighting the best. I don’t get a challenge out of fighting second-class fighters. He’s the best, so we would like to fight him.”
