By Brian Argabright
The 830 Times
Team Panterita is going to have to update its national title count.
Del Rio’s Jesus “Panterita” Martinez defeated Adam Zayas of Williamstown, N.J., by unanimous decision Saturday afternoon to claim the 2021 USA Boxing National Junior Olympics title in the Junior Male 125-pound weight class.
For Martinez, it’s his 14th national title, but this one may be a little sweeter after having to wait an extra year before he would get a shot at the gold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fighting out of the red corner, Martinez dominated the fight from the outset. He rocked Zayas with a big left hook that wobbled the fighter in the first round, setting the tone for both fighters in their three-round match-up.
Martinez neutralized Zayas with his speed. Moving in, striking quickly and then backing out of danger became Martinez’s calling card throughout the fight. At times Martinez would throw and land three punches before Zayas could even counter.
In the third and final round, Martinez punctuated his time in the ring with a hard, stiff right that stunned Zayas. The round ended soon afterwards, and the result was left in the hands of the judges.
After a few minutes, the result was announced that Martinez had won by unanimous decision, notching his fourth win in as many days. Three of Martinez’s wins came via unanimous decision. His first win of the tournament was a TKO via referee stoppage.
Prior to the award ceremony, USA Boxing offered best wishes to the US Boxing team in Japan for the 2021 Summer Games and to the team representing the United States at the 2021 Junior Pan American Games qualifier. As for this year’s winners at the Junior Olympics, they were reminded that they would be training for the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024 or the Games in Los Angeles in 2028.
