Sergio Martinez of Argentina recovered from a knockdown to defeat champion Kelly Pavlik and win the WBO and WBC middleweight titles in Atlantic City on Saturday. Martinez was knocked down in the seventh round but recovered to inflict a cut above Pavlik's right eye that turned the bout back in his favour in the ninth.
The Argentine built on that momentum and earned a unanimous points victory. Martinez (45-2-2) dominated the early stages with superior speed and footwork, darting in and out and landing right jabs and straight lefts. His movement left Pavlik (36-2) off balance, causing him to lunge with his punches and allowing Martinez to land counters over the top of the American's jab.
Pavlik, however, began to close the distance in the fifth round and cut off the ring more effectively. Martinez walked into a short right hand that dropped him to the canvas in the seventh round and while he appeared unhurt, the knockdown added to the sense the contest was slipping away from him. But the Argentine turned the tide two rounds later, opening up a cut above Pavlik's eye.