2004 Olympian and longtime super welterweight contender Vanes Martirosyan passed away yesterday at the age of 39 after a “two-year battle with skin cancer.”
Though he never managed to claim a world title,
Martirosyan spent much of his career giving top fighters everything they could handle. He fought Erislandy Lara to a technical decision in 2012, floored Demetrius Andrade in a split decision loss a year later , arguably beat Jermell Charlo before settling for a close UD loss, then did the same in his rematch with Lara.
Things soon took a downturn. An ill-advised decision to sign with Don King kept him out of action for nearly two years after the second Lara fight until a courageous but similarly ill-advised decision to face Gennadiy Golovkin on short notice saw him brutalized in under two rounds. That would prove to be his final fight; what appeared to be a severe depression episode followed, including an arrest for allegedly headbutting his wife.
The pair reconciled and remained together, only for Martirosyan to receive a diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma. Faced with potential surgery, Martirosyan elected to attempt treatment at a “holistic,” “alternative” center in Tijuana.
He leaves behind a wife and two children.
