De Los Santos and Martin in talks for March 29 fight at MGM Grand

Fight in the pipeline?

Fernando Sabatini reports that the Martin-De Los Santos meeting is in negotiation. If it comes to fruition, it would be the first fight for De Los Santos (16-2, 14 KOs) since his 12-round unanimous decision loss on Nov. 16, 2023 in Las Vegas. That was a fight for the vacant WBC lightweight title. Shakur made it really ugly with his moves and clinching.

Fans at T-Mobile Arena that night booed both fighters from the fourth round onward Shakur continued to boo while being interviewed in the ring after the fight. He was the one who made life boring for the fans in Las Vegas, who have little patience with the runners.

That fight should have been scored as a draw or a win for Edwin because he landed every significant punch in the contest. Shakur was simply running and holding.

“The Ghost” Martin (18-1, 12 KOs) is coming off an eighth-round loss to WBA lightweight champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis on June 15, 2024. Martin was trailing at the time of the knockout by one score of 67 -66, 67-66 and 67-66.

If the fight were to happen, De Los Santos should be the favorite to knock out Martin because he has the advantage in hand speed and punching power. Martin looked bad in his fight against Artem Harutyunyan on July 15, 2023, and had to rally to win that fight with a 12-round unanimous decision in the championship rounds.

14 months too long?

For Martin and De Los Santos this is an important fight because they both need a victory to stay in the hunt for the world title. De Los Santos has already been out of the ring for 14 months since his defeat against Shakur. He should have returned a long time ago.

“I have confirmed that Edwin De Los Santos and Frank Martin are in talks for a possible fight on March 29th at the MGM in Las Vegas as part of the Fundora-Spence event [card]. He could be at 135 or 140 pounds,” Fernando Sabatini said on X.