If Canelo wants a comeback opponent, why not Lester Martinez?
First up, Immanuwel Aleem and the WBC Interim strap on Saturday
We have an intriguing weekend of boxing ahead of us, starting with Michael Conlan’s ongoing rebuild in Belfast on Friday evening when he tackles Kevin Walsh. The following night, in Florida, Carlos Adames defends his WBC middleweight title when Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams grabs a delayed shot.
Prior to that, Matchroom are keeping active with a domestic show as George Liddard looks for a credibility boost versus former European champion Tyler Denny. While all of that is of merit, we’ll focus here on a California clash between two super-middleweight contenders.
For Lester Martinez, boxing in a modest venue against an opponent who has arguably seen better days might feel like a bit of a step down, given his previous ring appearance. Last September, Martinez was part of the supporting cast for Canelo vs Terence Crawford at Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas.
Boxing fellow-unbeaten Christian Mbilli to a highly competitive draw was unsatisfactory for both parties. As it turned out, neither man was heavily stung by the outcome.
Mbilli was later elevated to full WBC super-middleweight champion following Crawford’s unceremonious title stripping. Martinez now contests the same Interim crown he was unable to snag in Vegas.
The sensible option of an Mbilli rematch will have to wait as Lester looks to take care of business in San Bernardino this Saturday evening, live on Pro Box TV, against grizzled old stager Immanuwel Aleem.
In fact, the Orange Show Events Center is a relatively familiar venue for the Guatemalan who fought their just six months before the Mbilli matchup. On that occasion, Joeshon James suffered his first career loss as Martinez’s heavy hands sealed the deal in four.
A repeat here would send the expected strong crowd into raptures. Even though Martinez feels a bit like a prospect firing his way to the top, he’s now 30 and with little time to waste.
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Aside from the 10-round Mbilli sample session, quite how the man trained by Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre would fare against the top dogs at 168 remains to be seen.
This weekend’s opponent, Aleem, has been putting in the hours. The Virginia boxer has avoided defeat since 2021, amassing a neat little run of four wins and a technical draw since losing to Amilcar Vidal, then a reasonably valued prospect.
That glitch came off the back of a Ronald Ellis points reverse and, three fights after Aleem’s first stoppage defeat, a crunching knockout to Hugo Centeno Jr. ‘The Chosen One’ could’ve been forgiven for admitting he’d had a good swing at the sport before packing away the gloves.
Refusing to slide out as a loser, Aleem’s upturn in fortunes has led to a title shot. While he is strong, experienced and has boxed over 10 rounds numerous times, Aleem has yet to compete in a scheduled 12-rounder.
BoMac believes Martinez would’ve stopped Mbilli if their bout had been over 12 rounds, as it should have. Now he gets the chance to test out that theory for real.
I reckon Aleem will have enough to ride through any early dangers, ignore the lopsided energy of the crowd and reach the end. A wide, dominant points win for Lester Martinez, who will then be looking for challengers and/or challenges.
While the Mbilli rematch would make sense, the Frenchman might fancy a crack at Canelo first as the Mexican seeks to rebound and rebuild from the Crawford loss. The winner could then look at Martinez, who will hope to be in a stronger position.
Canelo might fancy the idea of getting one back on BoMac and the team following Crawford’s win in 2025. McIntyre will believe he has the blueprint to win again. Getting Crawford to carry it out and Martinez are two different things, however.
Image Credits: Chapin TV, Pro Box.
About Steve…
Current existence: Boxing writer, eLearning educator.
Previous lives: Online editor at Boxing News Magazine. Author (8 books), podcaster (500+ eps), scriptwriter for Motivedia channel, newspaper journalist, copywriter & educator.
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