Martinez makes cut-throat gesture to Burns

STV

Roman Martinez is clearly confident he will retain his WBO super-featherweight title against Ricky Burns when the pair meet at Glasgow’s Kelvin Hall on Saturday night. The Puerto Rican drew his thumb across his throat while standing head-to-head with his Scottish challenger; his prediction of things to come.

Martinez has every right to be confident having never been beaten in 25 professional contests. Not only that but the heavy-handed 27-year-old has knocked out 15 of his opponents including Alex Arthur conqueror Nicky Cook to claim his title.

Burns however is a clever fighter who can box smart and is fast becoming the master of hitting without getting hit. Martinez has a reputation for being an aggressive fighter, but Burns has handled similar fighters in the past, albeit not at world level.

The 27-year-old Coatbridge boxer was like a matador taming the bull against an intimidating Michael Gomez and in his next fight against Kevin O’Hara he managed to stay well away from the Northern Irishman’s huge swings.

This is a different league altogether for Burns, but with a record of 28-2 (7 KOs) it is evident he is not a heavy-hitter and will have to maintain focus for the full 12 rounds if he is to secure fistic immortality.

Burns is on a 13 fight winning streak since losing to Carl Johanneson back in 2007. His first loss came against Edinburgh’s Alex Arthur the year before but neither loss was inflicted by knockout. While his boxing skills have improved since then, Burns’ strong chin will give him confidence going between the ropes with Martinez and the inevitability of trading blows on occasion.

Meanwhile Arthur, who is now campaigning at lightweight, returns to the ring on the undercard of ‘Burns Night’ after nine months out of action following his defeat to light-welterweight Nigel Wright. Peter McDonagh is his opponent on the night, but the pair almost came to blows during the weigh-in as McDonagh tried to rile the former WBO super-featherweight champion.

Both McDonagh and Martinez have tried to intimidate their opponents the day before the fight, but both Arthur and Burns are experienced enough to remain focussed and stick to the game plan on the night without getting derailed by personal insults.

BURNS NIGHT: