VANES MARTIROSYAN vs WILLIE LEE

Vanes Martirosyan goes for his first professional title on Saturday, and the undefeated U.S. Olympic representative is of course a heavy favourite.

Martirosyan meets seasoned southpaw Willie Lee in a 12-rounder for the NABF junior middle championship on the Youngstown, OH, portion of the Top Rank PPV view show that is headlined by Kelly Pavlik’s middleweight title defence.

The sportsbooks make this a potential blowout for Martirosyan, with an under/over wagering proposition of 5.5 rounds. I think that Lee can do a bit better than these odds suggest.

Although Lee has been stopped four times, the 29-year-old from Mississippi is on a decent run of form, with three wins in a row, and he gave perhaps his best-ever performance in his last fight when he narrowly outpointed Alex Bunema to become NABF champion.

Lee is considered something of a trial horse, but he has shown grit and determination. He put up a stubborn stand a few years ago against Sechew Powell, who was unbeaten at the time and considered an outstanding prospect. Lee fought hard in this all-southpaw fight but was worn down by punch-accumulation before being floored and stopped in the final round. He was inactive for more than a year but seems refreshed and a little bit revitalised in his return to the ring.

This is, let’s face it, a showcase fight for Martirosyan. The tall boxer-puncher from Glendale, CA has been looking stronger, more mature and definitely harder hitting in the past year under the tutelage of Freddie Roach and Jesse Reid at the Wild Card gym, with two one-round knockouts in his last four fights. In his most recent appearance, Martirosyan hammered the normally hard-to-stop Andrey Tsurkan in six rounds.

For Lee, this is an all-to-gain, nothing much to lose type of fight. He will never get another shot at appearing on PPV. It is up to Lee whether he gives it all he’s got or lapses into the “opponent” mentality once he starts getting hit.

You look at Lee’s record, especially the third-round stoppage loss to Ishmail Arvin, and you think that he can’t possibly last too long with a red-hot prospect such as Martirosyan. Yet a little success can do things to people in any of life’s endeavours — the flame of hope flickers a bit brighter. Lee goes into this fight as the belt-holder, he has just beaten a fighter of good repute. Maybe he can steel himself to give a surprisingly good showing.

I can’t see Lee winning this fight, nor can I see him going the distance. I think, though, there is a chance that he can extend Martirosyan into the second half of the fight and perhaps a bit beyond — which wouldn’t be a bad thing for Martirosyan’s ring education. I’m thinking of a Martirosyan stoppage win around about the seventh or eighth round.