No risk, no reward?
Lightweight contender Frank Martin knew it was a gamble to take on rising star Michel Rivera in Saturday’s title-elimination match at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas (Showtime). The winner can claim the title within a match or two. The loser will have to rebuild.
Martin is willing to roll the dice because he believes in himself.
“This is a match that will take me to the next level,” he told Boxing Junkie. “…Once they told me it was a title elimination, I agreed. I know this is a war [early] to do right now in the careers of both of us. A lot of people close to #1 won’t win it.
“If that’s what it takes to get to the next level, then I have to take it. It’s just one of those battles where you have to accept it and start from there.”
Martin (16-0, 12 KOs) spends a lot of time with two top boxers, Errol Spence Jr. and Jermell Charlo. All three were trained by Derrick James. And Spence is his promoter.
Spence, a welterweight champion, has been by Martin’s side every step of the way in his current journey, which is invaluable for a young boxer about to have his most important fights coming up. They practiced together in Dallas.
“[Spence] keeps me motivated,” says Martin. “He helped me a lot, especially in this match. He was really locked to me. We work out together and get fit, stay together at Airbnb, eat the same things, exercise at the same time.
“He worked with me a lot, helped me, pushed me.”
Martin. 27 years old, confident he will end up where Spence is now, on the pound-for-pound leaderboard. The next step was a victory over Rivera, whom Martin respected but considered inferior to him in every aspect of the game.
The fight is being billed as a WBA title knockout, meaning the winner will face the fearsome Gervonta Davis, who owns the sanctioning agency’s 135-pound sub-title (which Boxing Junkie doesn’t recognize. ).
That’s who Martin wants. And that could happen if Davis beats Ryan Garcia in a match scheduled for next year. Yes, Martin is thinking big.
“Yes, it is life changing,” he said. “That’s what I felt I had to do. I have to go in there and fight superstars to become a superstar. Some superstars don’t have to fight many top people. I am not one of them. I will fight superstars to be one.”
Life changing, really. Martin is on the threshold doing special things that could make him a star and make him a fortune. However, he doesn’t want to get ahead of himself.
It’s one step at a time. And Rivera is the next step. That’s what he’s focused on at the moment.
“I don’t let these opportunities derail me,” he said. “They just kept me locked in even tighter.”
