Teon Kennedy vs Chris Martin Ends In Draw

by Gautham Nagesh

LAS VEGAS, Nev.–Junior featherweights Teon Kennedy and Chris Martin battled to a majority draw at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino here on ESPN’s Friday Night Fights in a bout that shined the light on both men’s limitations.

Kennedy was the busier fighter for most of the ten rounds but his punches lost most of their snap in the middle rounds and he was unable to make enough of an impression to justify his status as the slim favorite entering the bout. Martin landed the harder, cleaner blows but didn’t throw enough punches to secure the victory. Both men will be disappointed but only Martin appears capable of performing at a higher level than he showed on this evening.

Kennedy’s stock has fallen considerably after losing his last bout to Alfonso Lopez and unfortunately he didn’t do much to reverse the slide, though one judge and a number of viewers had him winning the fight. Kennedy’s attacks is predictable and his preference for wide body punches leaves him open for counters. He also tends to square up and pays little attention to angles, allowing Martin to counter at will.

Martin started the bout dancing but settled down and began landing the left hook with success in the second stanza. Throughout the fight he closed rounds well, which may have helped compensate for his less than stellar work rate. Martin was up by one on my scorecard heading into the final round but he failed to match Kennedy’s fire in the final round, costing him a potential win.