-Sergio Martinez Knocks Out Paul Williams in Two Rounds in the Williams vs. Martinez Rematch-
The rematch between Paul Williams and Sergio Martinez was over far before anyone could have predicted, and it ended emphatically. Martinez knocked out Williams in the second round of their rematch, turning a fight of the year candidate into a near surefire knockout of the year winner, and retained his middleweight title in the process.
Martinez vs. Williams Results
Both men came out aggressively in the first round, leading to wild exchanges. Martinez was crisper and was throwing and landing the shorter and more powerful punches. But Williams was getting in good work too, as both men were fighting hard from the get-go. Martinez won the round, and continued to work on landing his short, crisp shots as the second round began.
Then, in the blink of an eye, both men went to throw another shot. Williams, with his lanky 6’3″ frame, threw a looping left, and Martinez threw a much shorter and crisper shot. He feinted right first, then swung the left almost over his own head, and Williams never saw the shot coming. The punch landed flush on his cheek and in an instant sent him down, crumbling to the canvas.
He was out before he hit the floor, and while the referee counted him out at 10, there was no need to ever conduct a count at all. It was obvious that the Martinez vs. Williams results were already in, and that the Punisher wasn’t get back up. Indeed, the ringside doctors were already running into the ring to assist the downed Williams, as Martinez was celebrating across the ring. Official time was 1:10 of round 2, Martinez improves to 46 (25) – 2 – 2, and Williams falls to 39 (27) – 2.
After the Pacquiao vs. Margarito results from last weekend, some people have been murmuring that the winner of Martinez vs. Williams II would fight Manny Pacquiao at a catchweight bout. Indeed, that’s what Max Kellerman and crew wanted to know after the bout, and Martinez said that while he would have to listen to offers, he would, of course, be willing to defend his middleweight titles at as low as 156 lbs for the right fight.
In the meantime, regardless of whether Martinez lands a bout with someone like Manny Pacquiao, or even Floyd Mayweather, he has asserted himself at least as the #3 pound for pound fighter in the sport. For Williams, it’s a devastating setback, and he’ll need to figure out where he wants to fight, whether it be at 154 lbs, which is more likely, or at middleweight or elsewhere.
The Williams vs. Martinez results certainly were a shocker, and the dramatic and rapid end to the fight could not have been predicted. But it’s all the more a memorable encounter as a result, and it’s the exact kind of buzz-producing performance that Martinez needed to catapult himself into stardom.
