I always liked him a lot! I'd heard he was a last minute substitute to get into the WBC tourney in 67. A slick boxer/puncher. For those who saw the Ellis fight in the tourney, Jimmy had him in trouble with that quick start of his in the first but Martin hung. Did anyone notice how much 'body-hunting' Leotis did in that fight? He didn't go upstairs with his shots until later in the fight and IMO appeared to be coming on at the time of the stoppage. Mouth and nose damage. I'm going from memory here but I checked him on box rec some time ago to see what he did after the tournament. Next fight? Over to Germany where he KO'd Mildenburger. Back to the States just a few weeks later and lost a MD to the up and coming Henry Clark. Back across the pond to KO Spencer in London. Back to the States to cop two wins over Al 'Blue' Lewis. Down to Argentina where he lost a decision to Bonavena which, in many viewers minds, was somewhat less than legit. What a globetrotter! Then Sonny. I know, Sonny was shot by then but still viable and Leotis survived that left hook KD from Sonny early and knocked him cold. Interesting that Sonny had the same problems in the Martin fight that Leotis had in the Ellis fight. Sadly, a detached retina led to his immediate retirement following Liston. Born in 1939 he may have still been a viable contender into the early 70's. Comments appreciated; many interesting fights could have happened with a 70-72 Leotis. A Quarry-Martin s c r a p in the early 70's would have been a dandy!
I always love when people come on here and make claims about guys like Martin and Blue Lewis losing in Argentina to Bonavena without having any facts whatsoever. Ever seen the Martin-Bonavena fight? I have. Martin lost and deserved it. It wasnt controversial. Just like the Blue Lewis fight where Lewis lost every round but like Martin came back here telling an American public that didnt get to see the fight that theyd been robbed. Kind of like Zora Folley telling everyone he was robbed against Mildenberger when he ran all night and threw half as many punches. Martin was an inconsistent fighter who could look good against certain styles if the fight was fought at a measured pace but he didnt deal with pressure well at all. Hes become one of these kind of a folk guys, kind of like a better version of Jeff Merritt, that some have become fascinated with because of the era more than their modest accomplishments.
Hey klomp! I didn't mean to get your dander up. I only saw a couple of Martin's rounds against Bonavena so I can't judge the result objectively. But, I think, the scoring at the end warrants consideration. You didn't mention a lot of what I said. Give the guy kudos for globetrotting after Ellis in an attempt to establish himself and, I believe, fought Clark, three weeks after his trip to Germany against Karl. If you'd like to 'trash' a fighter at that time why not go after Thad Spencer, who was a 'sterling' 0-7-1 after Quarry? He dealt with Ellis's pressure, and Oscar's, and an aging Sonny's pressure. IMO your 'he's nothing more than Jeff Merritt plus' comment is totally off base. And I'd still like to have seen him in against Quarry in the early 70's had he not been forced into retirement. IMO Jerry's not going to ice him early. As much as I love Quarry, he wasn't the KO specialist that many hype him to be. Always like your insights klomp but I think you're a little too critical here.
