The former Rangers boss had his say on the Championship automatic promotion race
12:55, 18 Mar 2026
Russell Martin
Russell Martin(Image: Dave Winter/Shutterstock)
Though Middlesbrough may be the team he enjoys watching most this season, Russell Martin is backing Ipswich Town to win automatic promotion back to the Premier League.
Boro are locked in a battle with Ipswich Town and Millwall for the second automatic promotion spot in the Championship. With eight games remaining, Coventry City’s seven-point cushion over Boro makes them a difficult catch at this stage.
Martin knows well the feeling of winning promotion to the top flight, having achieved it as both a player and a manager. And the former Rangers boss believes that will be a key factor for the Tractor Boys too, with Kieran McKenna and a number of their players having already done it previously as well.
Martin told the BBC Football Daily Podcast: “I think having the experience of winning something can be really important. I think that in the Championship as well.
“Part of me still thinks Ipswich will do it because of the experience that Kieran and his players have of doing it previously. I think they’ll get automatic promotion.
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“I do think Middlesbrough are fantastic. I’ve enjoyed watching them probably more than anyone in the Championship this year. But the importance of experience is crucial.
“When we were in the Championship with Norwich the second time, after we got relegated, because we had so many players who had done it before, we almost felt like we'll do it, we know what it takes. The other teams, they’ll start feeling it a bit more.
“We’d been there, we’d done it, and we knew what it takes. I think if you have that in your building, maybe it does give you that bit of an edge.”
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