Anthony Joshua vs. Charles Martin Press Conference & Weigh-in
Charles Martin versus Anthony Joshua O2 Arena IBF Title Bout: Who Will Win, and Why
By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent
London, UK (April 8th, 2016)– Anthony Joshua will get eight million dollars, Charles Martin one million guaranteed. How much more the pay per view is worth to both fighters remains open. One thing is for sure: on Saturday night, April 9, 2016, at O2 Arena in London, someone is going to knockout the other person in the battle for the International Boxing Federation World Heavyweight title held by Martin, a belt vacated due to Tyson Fury’s mandatory rematch clause with Wladimir Klitschko after beating him.
With Joshua at 6’6” to Martin’s 6’5”, the size of the two fighters is similar. Southpaw Martin is 23-0-1, Carson, California, while Joshua is 15-0, Watford, United Kingdom.
The key to Martin’s win is actually a very simple one. First, Martin must force the same super speed world class pace he set against Vyacheslav Glaskov to push Joshua beyond his fighting limits. Second, Martin must take Joshua the distance in a technical war while outworking him.
Besides his last bout with Dillan Whyte, Joshua’s opponents look like rent-a-bum. Martin, based in what this reporter has seen, is already at the world class level and not because of the belt. Martin succeeded in his career with incredible hard work.
Critics and the British have gone to great lengths to trash Martin and hype Joshua. Notice how the same critics have NOT suggested Anthony Joshua fight David Haye, Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder, Chris Arreola, Travis Kauffman, Wladimir Klitschko, Eric Molina, Eddie chambers, Dominic Breazeale, Johann Duhaupas, Dereck Chisora, Alexander Povetkin, Erkan Tepper, David Price, Antonio Tarver, or any heavyweight of substance. Oh c’mon.
Seeing is believing.
In true reality, Europe has been cursed in recent days, with Robert Helenius getting knocked out in Helsinki by Duhaupas, and Tomasz Adamek getting knocked out by Molina. If Joshua gets knocked out by Martin, everyone will be like, that wasn’t supposed to happen. Or maybe Martin was better than we thought he was, or Joshua wasn’t the one.
I do not see Joshua outpointing Martin. There’s a something about him which has matured to level far beyond where he is ‘supposed’ to be. The Glaskov fight was a telling tale of pressure, cutting off the ring, boxing out of range, and putting Glaskov in a situation where he could not compensate for the fight which evolved in front of him and had no ‘Plan B’.
Inr ality, Joshua’s only chance is to get Martin out of there in the first four rounds. Joey Dawejko, a true heavyweight hitter, got stopped in four by Martin, and that’s telltale sign Martin is not going anywhere. If Joshua does it, hats off to him. But he won’t.
Martin will drag the bout into the eighth round or later, dragging Joshua into untested waters where he has never been. Joshua may be selling tickets, but his promoters, in taking this safe ‘risk’ may be taking the one bout too soon, such as they did in 2004 when young David Haye’s tune up tuned into a nightmare when he got stopped in four rounds by Carl Thompson and his career was suddenly in tatters.
The British would have the American and boxing public believe Joshua will either knocked Martin out quickly, or win as lengthy technical fight. In reality, Joshua has to reach a world class opponent, and Glaskov, world class himself, quickly came apart by the seams. O2 Arena is a hometown advantage of hell for a foreign fighter, but the pro-Joshua crowd would have little to say if their overprotected fighter got knocked out by Tyson Fury or David Haye. Martin is their excuse to avoid the real fight.
Martin is the real fight. The battle of the wannabes will be decided in rounds nine, ten and eleven, when one fighter emerges dominant, while the other fades away. Shades of Jerry Quarry versus Jack Bodell, when the British and European heavyweight champion Bodell, who beat Joe Bugner over 15 rounds, could not go one with Great White Hope Quarry. The victory in Martin versus Joshua will go to the better fighter-whoever it is. Despite British hype surrounding this bout, there are no guarantees. Martin has been completely overlooked, and this is his keen and key advantage. My view is Martin is the superior fighter, and Joshua is the untested commodity, and not vice-versa. On Saturday April 9, 2016, we’ll see the truth. This fight is either the holy grail, or a monstrous mistake.
Fact: this bout could go either way. If Martin winds up blowing away the division, nobody is seeing it. Joshua is not better than Martin. Joshua could be overhyped or he might be better. Right now, there’s no basis for the claim Joshua or his record is better than Martin’s, they key point the British have overlooked in going bananas accepting Martins’ fight offer. The Martin corner and Martin both feel Joshua can be beat. Who is a stepping stone for whom is a matter of opinion here. When Dereck Chisora called out Martin at the post fight press conference after he beat Glaskov, I was there. Martin wanted better, more, the best opponent. In my view, that stands for something. For the British to justify paying Joshua eight million dollars, to Martin’s one million, has no justification in reason in my view.
RUNNING ORDER (SUBJECT TO CHANGE) AND WEIGHTS
5pm 6 x 3 mins Featherweight contest
KAMIL LASZCZYK (9st 1lb 8oz) v IGNAC KASSAI (9st 1lb 6oz)
(Poland) (Hungary)
5.20pm 6 x 3 mins Super-Welterweight contest
TED CHEESEMAN (10st 13lb 7oz) v MARIO PETROV (10st 13lb 3oz)
(Bermondsey) (Mitcham)
6.05pm 10 x 3 mins Vacant English Lightweight title
OHARA DAVIES (9st 8lbs 9oz) v ANDY KEATES (9st 8lbs 2oz)
(Hackney) (Leek)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins Vacant IBF Inter-Continental Middleweight title
MATTHEW MACKLIN (11st 5lbs 7oz) v BRIAN ROSE (11st 5lbs 5oz)
(Birmingham) (Blackpool)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins WBA World Bantamweight title
JAMIE McDONNELL (8st 5lbs 6oz) v FERNANDO VARGAS (8st 5lbs 9oz) second attempt
(Doncaster) (Mexico)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins IBF World Featherweight title
LEE SELBY (8st 13lbs 1oz) v ERIC HUNTER (8st 13lbs 1oz)
(Barry) (Philadelphia)
Followed by
4 x mins Super-Lightweight contest
CONOR BENN (10st 4lbs 8oz) v IVAILO BOYANOV (10st 1lb 1oz)
(Ilford) (Bulgaria)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins Vacant WBA International Super-Middleweight title
GEORGE GROVES (11st 13lbs 2oz) v DAVID BROPHY (11st 13lbs 8oz)
(Hammersmith) (Caldercruix)
Followed by
12 x 3 mins IBF World Heavyweight title
CHARLES MARTIN (17st 7lbs) v ANTHONY JOSHUA (17st 6lbs)
(California) (Watford)
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