http://www.boxing.com/leotis_martin_glory_short_lived.html Here is a good article on Martin. A real shame what happened to the guy. Poised to make some real money after the Liston win, but the detached retina blew him out of the water.
I really felt sorry for Martin, scartissue,...for various reasons. Mainly, he had just arrived....with that scary ko of Liston, only to have his career end...that was so sad....and I kinda pitied Martin because he was so inarticulate....like he was re****ed in a way...I don't know if he really was, but he sounded that way. He wouldn't be able to cash in on that big ko...and earlier he had been such a hard luck kind of guy...losing right out of the gate in the heavyweight tourney to Ellis,...losing to Bonavena,...finally he hits pay dirt with Liston...and the bottom drops out for him again...so really sad.
He deserved a shot at the top and may have got one if not so unfortunate. I never thought of Leotis as a upper echelon contender though, Sonny though shop worn was having a decent day until being clobbered, but what a finisher it was.
A shame really.have to feel bad when a fighter getting to the top the hard way and finally is in line for a payday is derailed by a career ending injury.Life isn't fair sometimes.
Leotis Martin's win over Sonny Liston was, in a way, like the Buster Douglas win over Tyson. Martin was a big underdog. He'd already been stopped by a guy who held a minor title (Ellis ... like Douglas lost to Tucker). He'd been beaten by some fringe guys. He had to get up off the floor against Liston to score a shocking KO win. And, like Douglas, I doubt Martin ever could've duplicated that win. It was a once-in-a-lifetime-type victory. If Douglas had suffered an injury in the Tyson fight and never fought again, he would be held in much higher regard than he is today. Martin had already been stopped by Jimmy Ellis, who held the WBA belt. He would've been a huge underdog against Frazier, if Joe had chosen to meet him. Muhamamd Ali was about to come back to the sport, and Martin wasn't beating him. Martin had a so-so career. He was barely a top-10 contender, and his win over Liston was his biggest win ever. Realistically, it would've only gone back down from there. Maybe he gets a payday (like a $100,000) with Frazier, but he loses that one. Then he spends another five or six years getting pounded in the head by the new guys coming up - Quarry, Lyle, Foreman, Shavers. It's too bad he died so young from high blood pressure. But he had a good career outside of boxing and he didn't exit this life with brain damage as well. Martin left the sport a winner. Good for him. Money isn't everything. Especially if you have to get your head caved in by Joe Frazier to earn it.
Hey Red! My b'day bro! :good I loved Leotis, a last minute replacement in the Elimination Tourney. You saw the Ellis fight in 67; it still boggles my mind why he went 'body hunting' in the first few rounds instead of mixing in some two fisted head shots?? The stoppage came on a bloody mouth and nose and...he appeared, at least IMO, to be changing styles and starting to come on when the proceedings were halted. RIP brave Philly warrior! Don't you just love a good boxer-puncher? :happy
