Guam’s Roque Martinez defeated Ryo Sakai of Japan in a three-round unanimous decision to become the DEEP undisputed heavy weight champion.
Here is a description of the three rounds, according to witnesses:
Round 1:
Both fighters met in the center of the ring, with Mr. Martinez looking to engage while Mr. Sakai was trying to avoid it. Sakai tried to jab and use low kicks to keep Martinez at a distance. Mr. Martinez patiently hunted him down and landed the heavier of the strikes. He pressed Mr. Sakai on the cage and did some damage.
Round 2:
Mr. Martinez started out strong pepping Mr. Sakai with hard shots. Sakai did not want any of it, eventually getting pressed against the cage. Martinez did some damage and got a takedown. He worked from the top half, landing hard punches and elbows, bloodying up Mr. Sakai. Mr. Martinez went for a tight head and arm choke. Mr. Sakai appeared to be going out and went limp for a second but survived and managed to get up to his feet. Martinez closed the round with hard shots.
Sakai’s face was busted up, and his right eye was swollen shut. Right before Round 3 started the doctor stepped in to check him out and gave the all clear to proceed with the third round.
Round 3:
Mr. Martinez started strong and threw punches with bad intentions. Mr. Sakai ate a few before Mr. Martinez pushed him to the cage. Mr. Sakai hit a trip and landed on top in Mr. Martinez’s half guard. Sakai tried to work the split-second advantage, but Martinez defended himself well. Martinez scrambled to his feet with 20 seconds left in the round. He went after Sakai with hard punches, sending Sakai’s mouth piece flying. He pummeled Mr. Sakai until the sound of the bell to end the round. Mr. Sakai collapsed the floor and was done. Mr. Martinez walked around the ring with his hands in the air in triumph. The judges called it in favor of Mr. Martinez, becoming the undisputed Deep heavy weight champion Saturday evening.
Mr. Martinez is with Team RM SPORTS/SPIKE 22. His BJJ coach is Mike Ulloa, and his boxing coach is Michael Taijeron. Both were at the fight. The fight took place in Tokyo with Mr. Martinez’s mother, Odessa Martinez, fiance Seila Downey, and his team cheering him on.
