Munroe Decisions Martinez

Super bantamweight Rendall Munroe shockingly upset European super bantamweight champion Kiko Martinez tonight, beating him by a 12-round majority decision in Nottingham, England. The final judges’ scores were 115-113, 115-113 and 114-114. Munroe used the ring, a good jab and a lot of twisting and turning to avoid the big shots from the powerful Martinez, keeping him from connecting with his aggressive attacks in the early stages of the fight as he had against Bernard Dunne.

In the early rounds of the fight, Martinez applied a lot of pressure as he attacked often, charging forward and throwing sweeping hooks at Munroe. However, most of Martinez’s shots were wild, making it easy for Munroe to bend backwards or move away to avoid the punches.

As the rounds progressed, Martinez became much slower and weaker with his shots. This allowed for Munroe, a tricky southpaw, to begin landing often with short combinations and a steady jab which he kept in the face of Martinez over the final six rounds of the fight.