DiBella: "Martinez Won't Go Fight Bigger Bums Like Pacquiao"

Mike Coppinger at BoxingScene.com spoke with promoter Lou DiBella, who was harsh on poor folks that think his fighter, middleweight champion Sergio Martinez, should at least consider a move up to 168 pounds. Here's what DiBella said about moving up: "I’m sick of listening to idiots suggest it, and quote me on that, idiots. He is the smaller guy at every weigh-in. He’s smaller than Barker, he’s smaller than Dzinziruk, he walks around at 168. These ’68 pounders walk around at 190. He weighs in for fights at 156, 157, 158. He’s a very small middleweight. At ’68, he would just be overpowered. I’m not gonna do the Pacquiao thing where you go pick a guy bigger than you who sucks." Since I'm one of the idiots who thinks Sergio should consider moving up or accept that his lot in life right now is as the exciting, highly-talented ruler of a still fairly weak division that doesn't offer him many compelling fights -- that is, do one of those two things instead of focusing too much on welterweights like Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Jr, and Miguel Cotto -- I felt compelled to really take a look at what Lou is saying here. http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/images/photos/001/072/074/92310mart00t_crop_340x234.jpg?1290081440 http://philboxing.com/news/pix/martinez-dzinziruk.weighin.280w.jpg http://www.cyberboxingzone.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/pavlik_martinez20pc20100313_005a.jpg http://answers.bettor.com/images/Articles/thumbs/extralarge/Kelly-Pavlik-v-Sergio-Martinez-middleweight-title-fight-5ydxcb55hk13wx45kqz5n245-.bmp Now, listen, I'm not saying Sergio Martinez is a big middleweight. He isn't. But he's not some little fella battling the Goliath-like behemoths of the middleweight division, either. Star-divide Martinez has fought four legit fights in the middleweight division, and one years ago that doesn't really count, where he weighed in at 159. But let's forget that one. In these four fights, Martinez has weighed in at 159, 159½, 157¼, and 158¾. So is he really weighing in at "156, 157, 158"? No, not really. Does Sergio Martinez really walk around at 168 pounds? He might. But late last year, before Martinez rematched Paul Williams in a fight that had a 157-pound catchweight, the WBC had their 30-day weigh-in for the fight to make sure everyone was on point. Paul Williams weighed 162 pounds. Sergio Martinez weighed 176 pounds Was he really smaller than Sergiy Dzinziruk? Dziniruk is a 154-pound fighter. Always has been. And sure, Martinez has himself come up to 160. But Dzinziruk is not a big middleweight, either; he's not even a big junior middleweight, really. He's average height for the weight, but he's got a short reach and just doesn't have a big frame at all. For the 30-day weigh-in prior to facing Dzinziruk, he was at 173. On the HBO unofficial scales, Martinez was 170 against Dzinziruk. Will Barker be bigger than Martinez? Yes, probably. Seeing them standing together, Barker does look like a bigger guy than Sergio. I know why DiBella would say these things, because it serves his fighter well. This is the guy who said after Martinez beat Dzinziruk that Sergio had proven he was a Hall of Fame fighter. He's doing his job as a promoter to try to shut down any whiff of naysayer rebellion toward his fighter, and speaking only for myself, I say again that I don't think Martinez absolutely has to go to 168. He's fine staying at 160 and ruling the division, and maybe some guys come up from 154 or meet him in the middle from 147. But is Martinez really that small? No, I don't think he is. Would he be giving up some size at super middleweight? Of course, but I don't think it would be an absurd amount. It's about talent, and I think Martinez has the talent to be successful at super middleweight, and to win meaningful fights there. It's not like I'm saying I want him to go up so he can get starched by someone. I'm confident he could hold his own and then some. There would be good fights for him at the weight, and bad fights for him at the weight. And to be entirely fair, DiBella does say that they would entertain the idea of fighting Carl Froch, should Froch beat Andre Ward on October 29 to win the Super Six World Boxing Classic. That would be a good fight. But I'm just an idiot, and I'm OK with that.

Comments (20)

then he will fight smaller bums

14y ago

DoktorSleepless

He mentions Pacquiao, Mayweather, Cotto, and Chavez Jr. all the time. He doesn't mention anyone else. Why not keep proving yourself as a p4p fighter by fighting some more beltholders in your division while you are chasing the payday? You must not keep up. Martinez and Dibella have been working for a Sturm fight for over a year now, but Sturm doesn't want the fight. And after Gale won the IBF belt from Sylvester, Martinez wanted to fight him instead of Barker, but Gale refused because he wanted an easy defense in Australia first. And if you forgot (I don't blame you), Chavez is also a beltholder. A win over him is meaningless, but at least it's a money fight and it's a good way to get Martinez some much needed exposure. So the only beltholder he hasn't been chasing is Pirog. Something people forget is that Pirog is paper champ and hasn't done much to prove his worth. A win over him is meaningless and he won't bring any money or exposure to the table. There's very little incentive to fight Pirog. Dibella is an *******. Sergio walks around at 168? Biggest BS I've ever heard. Martinez is 170ish on fight night. Remember that weigh in 30 days before the Williams fight - 176! Martinez wants to fight Pacquiao who is 148 on fight night! In other words, Sergio would have a 22 pound weight advantage (14.86% weight advantage). If Sergio fought Hopkins then he would be at a 16 pound weight disadvantage at his current fight night weight (Hopkins is 186 on fight night). This would be a 9.4% advantage for Hopkins, which shows us that it would be much less outrageous for Martinez to fight Hopkins than Pacquiao to fight Martinez. Is anyone calling for Martinez to fight B.Hop? No! Those pre-fight weigh ins are with clothes/shoes on. He doesn't really weigh 176 before Williams. Anyway, Martinez himself said he was only 169 pounds a month ago before the Barker training camp. Any other weigh in is irrelevant. We're talking about how Martinez walks around NOW, not this one fight 3 fights ago. Also, your example only make sense if Pacquiao goes up to fight Martinez at middleweight. Nobody is saying that. The fight would take place at 154 so Martinez would have to lose weight. At jr middleweight, Martinez would come in at 165 max. But even then, I do agree the weight difference would still be unfair. And for the same reason, a fight between Martinez and Bernard would be unfair. Same goes for Lucian Bute because he's practically a light heavyweight despite fighting at super middleweight. In his last HBO fight where we could see his fight night weigh in, he was 183 pounds. Andre Ward is also in the same area. There's a giant weight gap between middleweight and super middleweight that isn't seen between other divisions.

14y ago

Motofan

Pacman hasnt fought a real name since the 2nd Marquez fight. He fight old names to impress retards.

14y ago

BURNER

I mean he can either move up and fight the good SMW's or he can grow old and fight the Darren Barkers of the world while whining that May and Pac wont fight you. His choice really.

14y ago

deejd

I think Pavlik could reconcile losing to Hopkins at 170 much more easily than the way his face got busted up at his preferred weight class. That's a good point, but it was his first loss against an old guy who was suppose to be on his way out. He wasn't the same afterward.

14y ago

daggum

dibella is right. martinez fights bums his own size while ducking all the dangerous middleweights.

14y ago

Gino_Ros

.... B-Hop. I think Pavlik could reconcile losing to Hopkins at 170 much more easily than the way his face got busted up at his preferred weight class.

14y ago

Gino_Ros

Manny only moved up to 154 to face Margarito, and Mayweather only moved up to 154 to face De La Hoya. So the argument that Martinez only moved up to 160 to face Williams is BS because now he has stayed there. Mayweather and Manny immediately moved back down. . OK, Fair enough. So, we agree that May & Pac are WW's, and Sergio is a JMW. What's so wrong with a JMW wanting to fight the #1 fighters who happen to be one division lower at WW? Did anybody call Hagler a b!tch for pursuing a Leonard fight?

14y ago

deejd

Sergio fought (and ruined) Pavlik. .... B-Hop.

14y ago

Beater_of_ass

Manny only moved up to 154 to face Margarito, and Mayweather only moved up to 154 to face De La Hoya. So the argument that Martinez only moved up to 160 to face Williams is BS because now he has stayed there. Mayweather and Manny immediately moved back down. Secondly, while Manny and Floyd stayed in their divisions there were actually within the scope that there was a SMALL chance they could lose. Martinez is fighting a 25-1 underdog as a HBO Main Event... If Manny or Floyd even chose someone like that as an opponent they would be RIPPED by everyone, somehow Sergio gets a pass? The excuse that he is too small is BS, Manny was too small for Oscar. No one is saying Sergio needs to move up to 168 and immediately step in with Froch or Ward or Kessler. But I'd be ok with him against Miranda who is garbage a very probably win and get his legs wet in the weight. But for his promoter and Sergio himself to call out smaller guys while at the same time saying Sergio is too small for certain divisions is just pathetic. Sergio, most overrated fighter currently and possibly aside from DLH the most overrated in 10-20 years. But, I guess that is what happens when you beat fellow overrated Paul Williams.

14y ago

William_Blake

Dibella needs to stop mentioning Pacquiao's name. All Manny has done is carry the sport of boxing, gain worldwide appeal, and bring exciting fights. (-Mosley) DiBella only gets press when he's bashing TR or Pacquiao, and he knows it. Why isn't he promoting Martinez more? Why isn't Martinez fighting Pirog? There's a wealth of talent at 168, why is that so out of the question but DiBella thinks Pacquiao is ducking Martinez? Get a life Lou.

14y ago

bojangles1987

Moving up to fight Williams and then fighting Pavlik. punk moves? Those wins are incredibly overrated at this point. They are very good wins, but the fact people consider him p4p #1 based on those wins is ridiculous. And they weren't punk moves, they were real fights that a real fighter made. I'm worried that Sergio is looking at his age, looking at how little time he has left until he is past it, and is not going to challenge himself anymore because he is desperate for that big payday. He mentions Pacquiao, Mayweather, Cotto, and Chavez Jr. all the time. He doesn't mention anyone else. Why not keep proving yourself as a p4p fighter by fighting some more beltholders in your division while you are chasing the payday? You put yourself in better position for those paydays if you keep cleaning the division out.

14y ago

Gino_Ros

Strongly disagree with the bolded in this case. Martinez dominating a weak division doesn't impress me. There is nothing great about beating people like Barker I'm afraid. Martinez asks for a Floyd/Pac fight all the time even though he would outweigh Pac by 20-22 pounds (Pac is ~ 148 on FN and Martinez is ~ 168-170) and it is my belief that he would outweigh Floyd by about 13-15 pounds. Martinez moving up to super middle, where most guys are around 178 on fight night, would be giving up much less of an advantage than Pac and Floyd would be giving up by fighting Sergio. As I pointed out in my earlier post, it would be less outrageous for Sergio to fight Hopkins than Pac to fight Sergio. . If Martinez was fighting at 154, he would not be 170 on fight night. Why are guys using this inflated Sergio as the benchmark?

14y ago

Gino_Ros

Abraham sucked at 168 because his talent was way less than everyone else at 168. Abraham is the most one dimensional fighter i've ever seen: his gameplan is to block for the whole fight, swing every so often and hope he lands a big shot. Yes. That is the stylistic component that I referred to. But that shortfall was magnified when he faced longer guys who can keep him at bay easily. Why weren't the 160ers exposing him? Are you telling me that Lara would beat Abe as easily as Ward did?

14y ago

stefl14

I see what he is saying and mostly agree with it. I don’t believe to be great you absolutely have to jump up (or down, for that matter) in weight classes and collect belts. You can be equally great just dominating your own division and taking on top contenders. As well, there has been a lot of medical evidence to suggest that jumping up and down in weight (as a lot of boxers do) is bad for both your short and long term health and actually could make you even more susceptible to brain injury. Thus, if Martinez feels comfortable at his walking around weight in the ring, he should stay there and good for him. However, with all of that said, I think the shot against Pac was inappropriate and only weakens what I believe was originally a good point. Strongly disagree with the bolded in this case. Martinez dominating a weak division doesn't impress me. There is nothing great about beating people like Barker I'm afraid. Martinez asks for a Floyd/Pac fight all the time even though he would outweigh Pac by 20-22 pounds (Pac is ~ 148 on FN and Martinez is ~ 168-170) and it is my belief that he would outweigh Floyd by about 13-15 pounds. Martinez moving up to super middle, where most guys are around 178 on fight night, would be giving up much less of an advantage than Pac and Floyd would be giving up by fighting Sergio. As I pointed out in my earlier post, it would be less outrageous for Sergio to fight Hopkins than Pac to fight Sergio. As for the jumping up and down in weight causing medical issues, he wouldn't need to anyway, he could just come in at his fight night weight. Sergio blows up between fights anyway and cuts weight. His concern isn't a medical one. Sergio wants to beat up Pac and Floyd who he would outweigh by ~ 15-20 pounds on fight night but won't fight at super middle where he would have ~ 10 pound disadvantage? Give me a break. Giving up weight matters even less at higher weights too.

14y ago

Feint

14y ago

Seleo_No_13

This was something to argue about a year ago, but their choice of opponents now are nothing to brag about. It's not like Floyd or Golden Boy has responded to their challenge. DiBella saying all this won't help his relationship with Arum.

14y ago

stefl14

Please see Arthur Abraham at 168, mano. Yes. Some of that is stylistic. But reach and dimension also comes into play. Abraham sucked at 168 because his talent was way less than everyone else at 168. Abraham is the most one dimensional fighter i've ever seen: his gameplan is to block for the whole fight, swing every so often and hope he lands a big shot.

14y ago

stefl14

Dibella is an *******. Sergio walks around at 168? Biggest BS I've ever heard. Martinez is 170ish on fight night. Remember that weigh in 30 days before the Williams fight - 176! Martinez wants to fight Pacquiao who is 148 on fight night! In other words, Sergio would have a 22 pound weight advantage (14.86% weight advantage). If Sergio fought Hopkins then he would be at a 16 pound weight disadvantage at his current fight night weight (Hopkins is 186 on fight night). This would be a 9.4% advantage for Hopkins, which shows us that it would be much less outrageous for Martinez to fight Hopkins than Pacquiao to fight Martinez. Is anyone calling for Martinez to fight B.Hop? No!

14y ago

Gino_Ros

Just because theyre taller doesnt mean theyre bigger. Serg is a wide, ripped, muscular guy who is not weak by any stretch of the imagination. Please see Arthur Abraham at 168, mano. Yes. Some of that is stylistic. But reach and dimension also comes into play.

14y ago