Kiko Martinez gave little challenge to WBC featherweight champion Gary Russell Jr. in their May 18 title fight and Martinez is looking to reassess his career after some rest and relaxation.
Soon after losing to Russell on a Showtime-televised card from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, Martinez talked about the manner in which he lost the fight. Martinez suffered a cut above his left eye and the bout was stopped in the fifth round as a ringside physician told the referee the cut was too deep to allow him to continue. Talking about his title challenge being stopped, Martinez did not see much of an issue with being he cannot continue fighting.
"It was a good stoppage for a very tough fight. I'm definitely a visual fighter so the cut made it tough. Gary was in great physical condition and it was a very hard fight," Martinez said in the post-fight interview.
Martinez, a former IBF super bantamweight world champion, later talked about what his plans are for his career and the 33-year-old revealed he will rest and then look to go back to super bantamweight to fight for another title in that division. Martinez has spent the last few years competing at featherweight but has lost his last four world title fights at 122 and 126 pounds.
"I'm going to rest a little bit now, but I'll be back. I thought I had some good moments and had a good division. I think I'll drop back down to 122-pounds to win a world title there," Martinez said.
Russell's win over Martinez was part of a Showtime Championship Boxing tripleheader that was headlined by the WBC heavyweight title fight between Deontay Wilder and Dominic Breazeale, which Wilder won by first-round knockout.
