By Craig Daly: Frank Martin says he would like to step in as the replacement opponent for WBA secondary lightweight champion Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis if his fight with Ryan Garcia falls through for April 15th.
In addition to saying he’d be willing to step in as the replacement to face Tank in April, Martin said he’s ready to fight any of the top lightweights.
If true, Shakur Stevenson has already said he’d like to fight him next. This will be Martin’s chance to show that he’s for real about fighting anybody in the 135-lb division.
The lack of hand speed from the Errol Spence-promoted Frank Martin could hamper him against Tank Davis, Shakur Stevenson, and Ryan Garcia. Those guys are a lot quicker and more fluid. Martin seemed musclebound and not on the level of those fighters or Vasyl Lomachenko.
Martin (17-0, 12 KOs) defeated Michel Rivera (24-1, 14 KOs) by a lopsided 12 round unanimous decision in a WBA 135-lb title eliminator last Saturday night at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas.
I promise u I will fight dude in a heart beat good fighter nothing but respect I’m like that I promise y’all 👍🏾 https://t.co/kx8Bs6Qdo3
— Shakur Stevenson (@ShakurStevenson) December 18, 2022
While the Martin-Rivera bout was supposed to be a competitive one, the 27-year-old Martin dominated from start to finish due to Rivera fighting timidly, being too finesse-oriented instead of staying in the pocket and letting his power shots go.
The scores were 120-107, 117-110, and 118-109. Rivera was knocked down by a combination from Martin in the seventh.
“I’m ready for them [the top lightweights]; I’m ready for all of them. Hopefully, they see what’s up now,” said Frank Martin to the media after his win over Michel Rivera last Saturday night.
“Whoever,” said Frank when asked who he wants to fight next. [Jackson] Marinez was a better fighter than [Rivera]. Just more experienced.”
Martin had many problems with Marinez before stopping him in the tenth round in his previous fight in July. The way Martin fought against Rivera, he showed the same flaws in his game that Marinez took advantage of last summer.
“We [Tank Davis] can go. I just fought a title eliminator with the WBA, so we can go,” said Martin when asked if he’d be willing to challenge Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis next if his April 15th mega-fight against Ryan ‘Kingry’ Garcia falls through.
It’s unlikely that Tank Davis will bother with Martin because he has bigger names he can fight if his April match against Ryan falls through.
“It would be a good fight, an explosive fight between two fast fighters,” said Frank when asked what a match between him and the unbeaten WBA ‘regular’ lightweight champion Tank Davis would be like.