Arreola reflects on Martinez’s journey before WBC title defence

Hector Arreola has reflected on Lester Martinez’s rise from a young boxer in Guatemala to the WBC interim super middleweight championship. Martinez will make his first defence against unbeaten Croatian Luka Plantic on August 29 at the Galen Center in Los Angeles.

Arreola first encountered Martinez when the boxer was 12, at a talent identification event in San Benito, Peten. Martinez had started boxing at 11, and Arreola helped move him into an amateur programme in Izabal, a neighbouring department.

The boxer later represented Guatemala’s national team and won silver at the 2012 Youth World Championships. He also defeated two-time Olympic champion Arlen Lopez in international competition and made attempts to qualify for two Olympic teams before turning professional in 2019.

Martinez began his professional career with a second-round knockout of former world champion Ricardo Mayorga in April 2019. He then continued his development through fights in Mexico before appearing on major cards in the United States. His record now stands at 20-0-1, and he is the first Guatemalan boxer to win part of a major sanctioning-body world title.

Arreola has remained a central figure in Martinez’s corner throughout that progression. He joined the wider training team of Brian McIntyre, Esau Dieguez and Red Spikes in 2023, while continuing as Martinez’s longtime coach. The pair arrived in Los Angeles on Sunday for final preparations and fight-week activities.

The journey has significance beyond Martinez’s record, Arreola believes. Guatemala has limited professional boxing history, and Martinez’s emergence has given supporters at home and abroad an example of a fighter reaching the sport’s highest levels despite the country’s lack of a deep boxing tradition. Plantic, a 2020 Olympian from Zagreb, enters the contest unbeaten at 13-0 with 10 knockouts.