Julio Cesar Martinez will finally defend his WBC flyweight title again.
The Mexican, 29, was supposed to fight Angelino Cordova back in December, but their date was delayed.
They will instead fight on the undercard of Tim Tszyu-Keith Thurman at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on March 30. Martinez will be returning after a 10-month layoff,
“There is no rust whatsoever; can’t stop; won’t stop training,” he said. “I’m not just a 100 per cent ready, I am a 1,000 per cent ready.
“Eddy Reynoso has done a great job at keeping me ready and keeping me active; we have been in the gym every day, and we are ready for whatever comes our way.”
Martinez had an atypical road to his title. He fought Charlie Edwards and was declared the winner via knockout, but that result became a no-contest because Martinez hit Edwards while he had a knee on the canvas. He later stopped Cristofer Rosales in the ninth round of their fight for the vacant title to become champion.
Since then he has made six successful defenses of his title. In 2022, he moved up in weight to fight the great Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez, only to lose a one-sided unanimous decision.
“I know [Cordova] is a strong guy, a counter-puncher, like I said before we are excited to showcase the tools that we have,” he said.
Martinez’s record reads 20-2, with 15 KOs. He lost his professional debut by split decision, only to earn 16 straight wins that led him to his world title. Venezuela’s Cordova is undefeated, with a record of 18-0, 12 KOs, and is 28 years old.