To me, a 'risky' fight is one where you have a risk of being physically beaten up, or a fight against a smaller challenger who can defeat a strong favourite, not a fight where you have a chance of losing. I think having a chance of losing should be a normal part of the sport.
In my eyes, this fight was a much bigger risk for Martinez than it was for Cotto. If Cotto had lost, no big deal. He tried to move up and take on the MW champion of the world and failed. He was not the favourite to win and had no risk to his health as Sergio was not a KO puncher.
Martinez, on the other hand, was taking all the risks. Losing to a smaller fighter could put his career in jeopardy and as it turned out, Martinez will likely never be in another major fight again.
The problem with Cotto is that he took a fantastic win and in the space of 10 months has flipped it from being a great success to an abject failure due to his total inactivity and circus atmosphere when it comes to finally choosing an opponent. Like Ward he has no one to blame but himself for the way boxing fans are looking at him today.
In my eyes, this fight was a much bigger risk for Martinez than it was for Cotto. If Cotto had lost, no big deal. He tried to move up and take on the MW champion of the world and failed. He was not the favourite to win and had no risk to his health as Sergio was not a KO puncher.
Martinez, on the other hand, was taking all the risks. Losing to a smaller fighter could put his career in jeopardy and as it turned out, Martinez will likely never be in another major fight again.
The problem with Cotto is that he took a fantastic win and in the space of 10 months has flipped it from being a great success to an abject failure due to his total inactivity and circus atmosphere when it comes to finally choosing an opponent. Like Ward he has no one to blame but himself for the way boxing fans are looking at him today.
Comment