By: Sean Crose
Upcoming lightweights Michel Rivera and Frank Martin threw down at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas on Saturday night as the main event of Showtime’s final bout to be broadcast in 2022. Winners of the tenth round match two scheduled to enter 2023, a rising star in one of the sport’s hotter parts.
Rivera used her longer reach and sharp thrust for the first time. However, Martin launched an impressive combination. For the record, Rivera not only looks like Ali, he also wears Ali’s name on his trunk and sometimes tries to use the versatile defensive style of “The Greatest”. Martin was able to enter and forcefully land his men in the second. The third round was tight, with each boxer having impressive moments.
The flight slowed down significantly during the fourth last-minute save as Martin came to life and began to land in Rivera. Everything continued like a game of chess in the fifth inning. Martin was able to overtake Martin in the sixth inning and have his own strong moments.
A combination of Martin knocked Rivera out in the seventh round. Rivera got to his feet before the count of ten and the round was over shortly thereafter. Martin was able to go on to land on Rivera in season eight. The ninth game showed Rivera to have no response to Martin’s continued aggression. Martin appeared relaxed and controlled the fight well in the tenth round. Rivera, on the other hand, appeared almost sluggish in the eleventh round.
Martin appeared to have injured his left hand – albeit to a small extent – in the twelfth and final round. It doesn’t matter as far as the war is concerned. Southpaw controlled the last three minutes against a frustrated Rivera. No wonder Martin walked out of the ring after the match with a unanimous decision win over Rivera on his resume.
