With two losses saddled to his record, Sandor Martin did his best to turn around what appeared to be a middling career. On October 16th, 2021, the Spaniard was given an opportunity to do just that. On the night, Mikey Garcia, a former four-division world champion and pound-for-pound luminary, attempted to use Martin as a stepping stone before heading into bigger and more mouthwatering bouts.

While he was unheralded and mostly shoved aside as an inconsequential foe, the 29-year-old boxed his way to a close but clear unanimous decision, ultimately ushering Garcia into retirement.

With his career now flourishing, Martin (40-2, 13 KOs) finds himself on the verge of competing for a world title. First things first, however, the surging Spaniard will be asked to take care of business against Teofimo Lopez. Officially, the two will square off in the main event slot on Saturday night in New York’s Madison Square Garden.

As their showdown nears, Martin reveals that he feels no innate pressure. Having fought who many consider a surefire Hall of Fame lock, Martin is of the belief that whatever Lopez brings to the table, it’ll pale in comparison to what he faced against Garcia.

“No,” said Martin when asked if Lopez is a better fighter than Garcia. “Mikey Garcia is a four-division world champion. That’s so difficult in the sport of boxing. Teofimo fight in the lightweight category in a unification (against Vasiliy Lomachenko) and lost against Kambosos. You can’t compare the career of Mikey Garcia with Teofimo.”

As Martin alluded to, Lopez (17-1, 13 KOs) was forced to hit the reset button following an unforeseen defeat at the hands of George Kambosos Jr. late last year. Nevertheless, since then, the loquacious former 135-pound champ has bounced back nicely, stopping Pedro Campa in his super lightweight debut.

Yet, despite Lopez ostensibly finding his form and talking a good game, Martin is enjoying the bright lights and added notoriety.

“I feel good. It’s so special for me to fight here at Madison Square Garden. It’s a special opportunity. It’s my time to make history.”