CAs many may already know, Sandor Martin long ago he became the number 1 challenger of the World Boxing Council (WBC, for its acronym in English). That is, he is the first in line to go against the champion of the organization that awards the emerald green belt, but The Barcelona boxer has not finished closing any fight for the world title. Because? The answer is simple: money.
In boxing all interests are individual and therefore we think short term. This is where meritocracy dies, as is happening to Sandor. It doesn’t happen like in the UFC, where this private Mixed Martial Arts company manages all aspects and there are naturally constant confrontations between the best, whether they generate more or less profits. In the long run, it pays off because everyone has almost the same chance of making a name for themselves.
But let’s focus on Sandor’s case. It turns out that a few days ago the WBC made Devin Haney ‘recess champion’. That is, the American vacated his super lightweight title, It is assumed that at his own request, as reported by the WBC itself. What we do know with certainty is that the agency ordered ‘The Dream’ defend the belt against the Spanish Sandor Martín. However, Haney did not like the result of an auction that the promoter Top Rank – with whom Sandor now works – won for the rights to organize this fight. In short, for Devin it was a risky fight with little benefit. The first is the first. Marvin Hagler mentality? No.
Sandor had earned his chance by putting the great American stars in their place: He reviewed the former champion in four divisions Mikey García and came out stronger from the “robbery” (This is how I reflected it in my chronicle of the fight) contra Teofimo Lopez. Rarely has it taken as long to make a decision as in that fight and Let’s hope that now Top Rank defends the interests of the Spaniard as it did then with those of López. When it was his turn to face Haney, Martín stepped aside -in exchange for compensation- so that a more profitable fight could be held like Ryan García’s against ‘The Dream’.
Now, with Haney out of the equation, The WBC has handed the championship belt to the Dominican Alberto Puello and has ordered him to fight Sandor. So far, so good, but Puello, another short-termist who intends to hit the ball taking advantage of the fact that they have given him a world championshipis already talking about skipping the fight against Martín from Barcelona, that is, the one that would confirm him as champion. Request unification on social networks and he even chooses that it be against Teófimo or Isaac Cruz before against Liam Paro, as the first two have more media coverage. It’s not stupid. It remains to be seen if the WBC will really defend what it has ordered, because if not we will think that its principles are like those of Groucho Marx.
Of course, There will be those who think that Sandor is not profitable enough to be the co-star in a great American evening, and they may be right, but it is impossible to fly high if you are locked in the cage. He should have been world champion in 2022, but the business itself denied him what he earned in the ring. The least the WBC can do, for the good of its sport, is to force Puello – before he continues to grow – to comply, and if not, take away his belt.. You can rest assured, Sandor Martín will not be like Avni Yildirim.
