Martinez feeling fighting fit

Sergio Martinez is eager to shrug off his injury nightmare and re-establish his dominance of the world middleweight division when he returns from a 14-month absence to face Miguel Cotto at Madison Square Garden in New York on June 7.

The 39-year-old Martinez, who is still the WBC title holder, will face fellow veteran Cotto in a catch-weight contest at 159lbs in what will be his first fight since outpointing Martin Murray in Buenos Aires in April last year.

The Argentinian required an operation on his right knee shortly before the Murray fight and was forced to submit to a low-key training regime in order to defy some suggestions that his elite boxing career could be over.

Since beating Kelly Pavlik to win the title in April 2010, has made six successful defences and firmly established himself as one of the pound-for-pound stars of his sport.

Martinez said: “My knees are feeling great. I haven’t felt this good in a long time.

“The recuperation was very painful. I was on crutches for nine months and it is very hard to come back from that, but this is the road that I chose and I enjoy the achievement of coming back from something like this.

“Right now I am just the same as when there were no knee problems. I have overcome all obstacles.”

Martinez concedes the fight with former three-weight world champion Cotto could be his last, but he is not looking beyond the undoubted threat posed by the 33-year-old Puerto Rican.

Cotto’s dazzling career looked on the wane after he followed a clear points loss to Floyd Mayweather with a second consecutive defeat against unbeaten Austin Trout in December 2012.

But a successful comeback which yielded a third-round knockout over Delvin Rodriguez in December last year convinced Cotto he still has what it takes to make it back to the top of the sport.

Cotto may be even more convinced that he has a shot given Martinez’s recent injury history, but both Martinez and his promoter Lou Di Bella believe Cotto could be in for a shock.

Di Bella said: “I’m sure Sergio would rather be in his early 20s than his late 30s but I think in terms of his physical health, the year off – a year to rehabilitate and rest in terms of strengthening his body, I think is going to be a huge advantage for Sergio.”

After struggling past Murray via a slightly contentious decision, and having previously outpointed Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in the fight in which he injured his knee after suffering a final-round knockout, Martinez also insists he is overdue an emphatic performance.

“Cotto does not have the same power at the weight as he had at 147lbs and I am the one who has the power in this case,” Martinez added.

“I’m sure I will win the fight by knockout because I’m training in a very hard and intense way and with such motivation. I feel I have earned respect from the boxing community, but it will be universal after June 7.”