NEW YORK (AP) — Sergio Martinez dominated Matthew Macklin in an action-packed middleweight fight and stopped him after 11 rounds Saturday night.
Although no major belts were at stake because of sanctioning issues, Martinez kept his reputation as the top middleweight in the world with a late surge at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. He decked the game but outmatched Macklin twice near the end of the 11th round, then Macklin’s corner asked referee Eddie Cotton to stop it before the 12th round began.
Martinez now is 48-2-2 with 28 knockouts. He struggled early and even had his glove touch the canvas for a knockdown in the seventh round after Macklin connected with an overhand right.
But that was Macklin’s final big punch as he fell to 28-4.
