Former title challenger Vanes Martirosyan dies of cancer at 39
2004 Olympian and longtime contender Vanes Martirosyan died of skin cancer this past weekend.
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.
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