Efe Ajagba, 21-1-1 (15ko), beat former IBF title holder Charles Martin, who slips to 30-5-1 (27ko), by 4th round stoppage in an interesting bout between a man with a future filled with hope and the man with a past filled with regret. Martin performed admirably on the Zuffa 3 card. Ajagba moves on.
Big Nigerian puncher Efe Ajagba entered the ring as a strong favourite against the ageing former champion Charles Martin and would, ultimately, make good on the assumptions most held on how the fight would unfold. The 6-6 contender with the goodnight right hand undoubtedly has power and was expected to flatten the erratic 39-year-old Martin at some point. And so it proved. But there was value in the fight for the victor and for fans looking to assess his championship potential.
To his credit, Martin looked motivated and in reasonable condition - which isn't a given for his fights over the last 10 years - when his interest has appeared to wax and wane since losing the title to Anthony Joshua in 2016. That was a lucrative defeat and easy to assume a pay day that could prey on any weakness in a fighter's appetite for the sacrifices necessary to continue to compete at elite level. Periods of inactivity have diminished his relevance too.
Nevertheless, he began the fight well. Utilising the experiences accrued across 35 fights and his southpaw stance to out-fox the lumbering Ajagba across the opening two rounds. His feints off-set the favourite's feet and jabs to body and head kept him guessing. Martin kept moving but scored a significant left hand mid-round before a glancing right hand blow from Ajagba as the round closed offered a reminder of the risk Martin was navigating at any given moment.
Still, after two rounds, he was up and a combination in the last moments of that second round registered with Ajagba. I noted that the risk to Martin's prospects was getting "greedy" following that success and chasing gains that would place him in harm's way. The Ajagba corner encouraged their man to throw the jab more often. Too much of his stalking was predictable and clearly vested only in finding gap for the right hand rather than creating one.
Martin continued to manoeuvre the younger man successfully but was committed to capitalising on his second round success. The adrenaline of possibility coursing through his veins. A decade on the periphery skews perspective when a spotlight returns. And in that distraction, a lapse from rules of the game plan and Martin made his mistake. Permitting himself to linger close to the ropes, his East bound exit partially blocked and boom, the right hand Ajagba had cocked all fight landed.
Martin spiralled to his right, eyes wide open. Shock writ large across his wide face. The fight was now changed. To his credit. Martin rose and clung to participation with a hastily blended cocktail of gumption and experience. Ajagba pursued him but couldn't find the finishing blow. In Martin's corner, wily old pug Henry Tillman remained calm. A reassuring life guard in choppy seas. "He's gonna come swinging" Tillman warned. Martin appeared present and determined. But it had been a heavy knockdown. Aged 39, could he get back above the water line?
The fourth began. Martin wheeled right away from the thunder of the right hand. In an attempt to reassert himself he threw big shots too. A fool's tactic. One hail Mary left hand from the Southpaw stance almost took him off his own feet. Pride kept Martin vertical but it also walked him in to an ill-advised exchange he couldn't win. Ajagba landed again and Martin found himself on the canvas for a second time. Smiling as he rose the referee insisted he need to show him some defence. Martin's senses were too scrambled to truly adapt and the punches from Ajagba began to flow once more. The former champion took one or two pretty flush but stayed upright long enough for the referee to say "thats enough." Saving the one time 'king' from the knockout blow that was surely on its way.
In the aftermath, the victor visited the vanquished who was seated in his corner. Martin smiled the smile losers sometimes do, especially those that know the tide of time can no longer be resisted and said; "Good luck motherfucker."
Farewell Charles. Who's next Efe?