Reminiscent of Pacquiao

There were glimpses of Manny Pacquiao in the way Carl Jammes Martin fought Mexico’s David Picasso to win a split 10-round decision in his featherweight debut at the Kingdome Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, last weekend.

The first resemblance is Pacquiao and Martin are both southpaws. But beyond their stance, Martin displayed moves that reminded fans of Pacquiao in his prime. Martin attacked relentlessly, showering Picasso with punches from all angles like Pacquiao used to in smothering opponents. He gave Picasso little room to breathe. Picasso had a five-inch reach advantage yet chose to engage the rampaging Martin at close range.

A high work rate and volume punching put Martin in a position to dominate. He had prepared three months in Las Vegas and Los Angeles so his lungs wouldn’t fail him over 10 rounds. Down the stretch, Martin had a lot more gas in his tank than Picasso. In the third round, Martin busted Picasso’s nose and made it difficult for the Mexican to breathe the rest of the way. Pacquiao did the same to Lehlo Ledwaba in his US debut in 2001. In the first frame, Pacquiao broke Ledwaba’s nose and the South African was never the same, eventually losing on a sixth round stoppage.

Martin, 27, borrowed another page from Pacquiao’s playbook in slipping punches, frustrating Picasso with constant movement, spinning away while striking, darting in and out, avoiding staying in the pocket and throwing combinations with dizzying handspeed. More than anything, Martin displayed Pacquiao’s heart in stunning the WBC No. 2 featherweight.

Martin still has a lot to improve on but from his performance against Picasso, he’s on the right track. An Ifugao native, Martin hopes to eclipse the exploits of another Cordillera fighter Rey Tam who campaigned from 1974 to 1992. In 1978, the unbeaten Tam battled WBC superfeatherweight champion Alexis Arguello of Nicaragua at the Forum in Inglewood, California. Baguio City’s Tam was stopped in the fifth round. Martin aims to challenge for a world crown like Tam did and when it happens, he’ll make sure to join Pacquiao in the ranks of Filipino ring heroes.