DiBella Erupts: F**k Everyone Who Counts Martinez Out!

by Chris Robinson

Prior to the Andre Ward vs. Edwin Rodriguez official weigh-in inside of the Ontario Airport Hotel in Southern California on Friday afternoon, I shared a few words with Rodriguez’s promoter Lou Dibella.

As the conversation turned to another one of Dibella’s star fighters, middleweight champion Sergio Martinez, I could tell that the dialogue was about to change drastically.

Martinez is still looked at as one of the top fighters in the sport, but he is coming off of less than stellar performance against Martin Murray this past April that saw him hit the canvas before rising to pull out a close unanimous decision victory.

Now 38 years old and dealing with his share of injuries, some insiders feel that the Argentinean’s best days are behind. Meanwhile, WBA titlist Gennady Golovkin has seen his stock skyrocket over the past year with a slew of knockout wins.

Asked if he feels his fighter is being counted out too soon, Dibella sounded off.

“F**k people who are counting out Sergio Martinez,” Dibella stated. “He’s one of the best pound for pound fighters in the world. F**k HBO’s pound for pound list for not having him on it anymore. Sergio Martinez is still one of the best fighters in the world.”

Dibella quickly pointed to Martinez’s level of competition in recent fights as validation of his worth as a prizefighter.

“Murray was a real guy and Sergio beat him,” Dibella continued. “Barker’s a world champion and Sergio knocked him out. Macklin is one of the best middleweights in the world and Sergio knocked him out. Sergio’s done everything and beat everyone put in front of him.

“He’s 38 years old with bad knees and I got to listen to sh*t about Golovkin?” Dibella asked. “F**k people who count Sergio Martinez out.”