In the frostbitten heart of February, the Mohegan Sun Arena becomes a battleground for the featherweight throne of New England. Enter Nathan Martinez, sporting an 8-2 record with 2 KOs, and Ricky de los Santos, parading an 11-1, 3 KOs record. They’ll clash at Winter Brawl 2024, on Saturday, February 3, with the WBC USA Silver featherweight championship gleaming in the distance, untouched and yearning for a new master.
Tickets for this showdown, starting modestly at $67, are up for grabs. Fans can ambush them at CESfights.com, Ticketmaster, or the Mohegan Sun Box Office.
Both Martinez and De Los Santos are drooling over the chance to not only slap a shiny belt around their waists but also to crow about being the top featherweight in New England. They’re both eyeballing the WBC Silver title as their golden ticket to the big leagues.
Martinez, the local lad from New Britain, CT, practically has boxing in his blood. His tale is one of family tradition, following his brother’s footsteps into the ring, with Dad as the coach. With 85 amateur fights, including dance-offs at Nationals, Golden Gloves, and Jr. Olympics, Martinez went pro in 2018. He’s faced a couple of hiccups along the way, but hey, what’s a hero’s journey without a few dragons?
Now, let’s flip the page to Ricky de los Santos. A decade older than Martinez, this Providence, Rhode Island, native jumped into boxing at the ripe old age of 21. With an amateur record of 12-1 and a shiny New England Golden Gloves in his trophy case, he turned pro, assembling a dream team of coaches. But even heroes fall, as he did against Yeison Vargas in 2022. Yet, like any good protagonist, he dusted himself off and came back swinging.
De Los Santos is riding the high of new fatherhood, with his son born on January 15th – his fifth child, and first boy. Talk about extra motivation!
Here’s the breakdown: De Los Santos, standing at 5’7, towers over the 5’4 Martinez. But in boxing, size isn’t everything. Martinez plans to work the body and bring the heat, while De Los Santos is confident his speed, strength, and slickness will be too much for Martinez.
Both fighters are itching to ramp up their activity in 2024. De Los Santos is aiming for 4 to 5 fights, eyeing a world title by 2025. Martinez, on a similar path, plans to fight every 3 to 4 months. The WBC Silver title is just the first step on their road to glory.