According to Fightnews.com, Chris Martin upset promising bantamweight Chris Avalos in the main event on ShoBox: The New Generation on SHOWTIME® this past Friday night. In the co-feature, Lateef Kayode knocked out Alfredo Escalera, Jr. to remain undefeated at the Grand Casino Hinckley in Hinckley, Minn.
Usually going by the nickname of “The San Diego Kid,” Martin changed his moniker to “Marvelous” for this fight against Chris “The Hitman” Avalos to symbolize his belief that he’d defeat Avalos, much like “Marvelous” Marvin Hagler defeated Tommy “Hitman” Hearns in 1985. Although Avalos-Martin didn’t play out quite as brutally as Hagler-Hearns, Martin (19-0-2), of San Diego, Calif., proved to be the better fighter for much of their 10-round distance bout. The split decision was scored 98-92 and 97-93 for Martin and 98-94 for Avalos, though the fans and telecast announcers were audibly surprised that Avalos won the card of judge John Mariano of Hugo, Minn.
As the favorite heading into the fight, Avalos (16-1, 13 KOs), of Lancaster, Calif., by way of San Diego, was unable to display his power against Martin’s slick defense and counterpunching. Missing long and wide, the hard-hitting Avalos’ inability to connect opened the door for Martin to take control of the fight. Though not known for his knockout power, Martin used methodical combinations and seemed to grow stronger as the fight progressed. SHOWTIME analyst Steve Farhood attributed Martin’s success to his punches being “shorter, sharper and faster” than Avalos’.
Despite his victory, Martin will not leave with Avalos’ NABO bantamweight belt. Unable to make the contracted weight of 118 lbs., Martin weighed in at 120 pounds and negated the title fight. Title or not, the fight proved the point Martin was trying to make to the boxing community. At Thursday’s weigh in, Martin told the press that after his Friday night bout against Avalos, “You’ll remember Chris Martin.”
This kid has the makings of a superstar. Good luck to him.