Trained by the renowned Eddy Reynoso, Martinez took an early lead in the fight by scoring a pair of knockdowns in round three, both from hard jabs that knocked Cordova off-balance and sent him to the mat. Cordova was able to rebound however and get back into the fight by using his footwork and volume to frustrate the champion.
The fight was fought largely in close quarters, with Martinez suffering cuts near both eyes at various moments in the fight, including a gash above his left eye that required extra inspection from the ringside doctor between rounds. While Cordova threw over 200 punches more than Martinez (777-567), it was Martinez who held a decisive 33% to 25% edge in accuracy.
Heading into the final two rounds, all three judges had the fight scored 94-94. With the fight in the balance, Martinez out-landed Cordova 18-13 in power punches across the final two rounds to clinch the victory.
Esther Lin/Premier Boxing Champions