In solidifying his status as the top dog of the middleweight division, Sergio Martinez has shaken the division’s rankings to its roots. Following his stunning knockout of Paul Williams, “The Punisher” announced he would probably move down to 154 lbs. Likewise, a clash with Martinez prompted former 160 lbs kingpin Kelly Pavlik to announce that he would probably move up to 168 lbs. In effect, Martinez has pushed out two of the biggest names in the division, leaving a host of lesser known or almost unknown fighters looking to either test themselves against “Maravilla” (or avoid him altogether). The truth is that although the middleweights are often a glamor division in boxing, right now the ranks are pretty thin on talent.
The Germans
Ranked #2 by Proboxing-fans, Felix Sturm is probably the best and certainly the most proven fighter in the division after Martinez. Arguably best known for his controversial loss to Oscar de la Hoya in 2004, Sturm is a strong, tough character with a sound grasp of the straight-up European style of boxing. He owns a win over Hasine Cherfi, went 1-1 with Javier Castillejo, and beat Sebastian Sylvester. That said, he has never fought a truly world class middleweight, since the best of his resume either belonged at the bottom of a Top 10 list or were not really middleweights to begin with. Sturm would make a fight of it for Martinez, but only for however long he lasted. It would be an entertaining fight, but not competitive.
The aforementioned Sebastian Sylvester is the current IBF champion, but was totally spanked by Sturm and was lucky to knock out Castillejo in the 12th. I pick Daniel Geale to beat Sylvester in May (see more on Geale below), and Martinez would make mincemeat out of him. Sebastian Zbik, who Martinez declined to fight in favor of a juicy HBO show against Sergiy Dzinziruk, is even more questionable. The much-protected Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. actually poses a threat to Zbik, which speaks volumes.
The Young Bloods
As unremarkable as the German contingent is, all three Teutonic boxers are more experienced than almost all of the remaining top middleweights. James Kirkland is about on the same experience level as Zbik, making him the most seasoned of the up-and-coming crop. Yet despite being hyped by HBO announcers at nearly every opportunity, Kirkland simply isn’t ready for a clash with Martinez.
Kirkland, Daniel Geale, Dmitry Pirog and David Lemieux all need at least one clean win over a ranked fighter before taking a shot at Martinez. At their present stage of development, the fast hands, slick movement, prodigious work rate and firepower of “Maravilla” would hand any of these fresh faces a crushing defeat. Geale is taking his step up against Sylvester, but none of the others has a comparable fight scheduled at this time. Simply put, these guys all need to fight other contenders right now, and not the baddest boxer in the division.
Prospects
The politics behind Sergio Martinez’s fight with Sergiy Dzinziruk illustrate the state of the middleweight division nicely. Sebastian Zbik was the mandatory contender, but HBO thought so little of him that they point blank refused to televise a Martinez title defense with him. Instead, Martinez fought a veteran 154 lbs champion in the form of Dzinziruk. Excepting Sturm, everyone else at 160 lbs is more or less on the same level as Zbik, and although I could see HBO going ahead with a fight against the power-punching Canadian Lemieux or the American Kirkland for financial/promotional reasons, I have a hard time seeing the network bankroll a bout with anyone else.
The result is that Martinez will probably find himself in the right with guys from the 154 and 168 lbs divisions for a while. Some pundits will no doubt rant and rave about Martinez fighting another 154 pounder after Dzinziruk, but pay them no mind. The truth is that for the next year, a fighter from the 154-lb ranks will probably prove a stiffer challenge to Sergio Martinez than another middleweight.
