- Sergio Martinez vs. Darren Barker
-
No Fear. No Mercy. 
Date 01 October 2011 Location 
Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United StatesTitle(s) on the line The Ring Middleweight Championship 
Sergio Martinez vs. 
Darren BarkerMaravilla Dazzling Tale of the tape Quilmes, Buenos Aires, Argentina From Barnet, London, United Kingdom 47–2-2 (26 KO) Pre-fight record 23–0-0 (14 KO) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 158 Weight 159.5 Southpaw Style Orthodox Ring Magazine pound for pound No. 3 Recognition EBU (European) Middleweight Champion Result Martinez defeated Barker via Knockout Sergio Martinez vs. Darren Barker was a Middleweight fight for The Ring title. The fight took place in Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States on 01 October 2011[1] Barker, the European champion, was certainly not the first choice for Martinez, various other potential opponents turned down overtures for a bout against him. Promoter Lou DiBella offered the fight with Martinez to titleholders Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Daniel Geale as well as junior middleweight titlist Miguel Cotto and Paul Williams, for a rubber match. [2] Martinez said he was willing to face Cotto at middleweight or drop down to junior middleweight to fight him, but Cotto continues to ignore the fight. [3]
Contents
Background
Martinez
Martinez won 2 world titles in April 2010 with a unanimous decision over Kelly Pavlik.[4] Martinez made his first defense in spectacular fashion on Paul Williams by knocking him unconscious with one punch.[5] In his second defense, Martinez laid a beating on junior middleweight titlist Sergiy Dzinziruk, HBO's preferred opponent who moved up in weight for the opportunity. Martinez dropped him five times en route to a lopsided eighth-round knockout on March 12.[6] And because Martinez faced Dzinziruk instead of mandatory challenger Sebastian Zbik (whom HBO rejected for Martinez but accepted for Chavez), the WBC stripped Martinez and elevated Zbik to its titleholder. Zbik then lost the belt to Chavez on June 4 by majority decision. [7]
Barker
Barker won the vacant EBU middleweight title with a unanimous decision win over France's Affif Belghecham on April 9, 2010.[8] However, he was then the victim of a cowardly street attack in June of 2010 after he tried to prevent a scuffle. This event, coupled with a chronic hip-problem, left him inactive for over a year as he recovered from the assault and underwent hip surgery.[9] Barker returned to ring on April 30, 2011, once again winning the vacant EBU middleweight crown with a hard-fought unanimous decision victory over Italy's Domenico Spada.[10]
Undercard
Televised
- Middleweight bout:
Andy Lee vs. Brian Vera
- Lee defeated Vera via unanimous Decision (99-90, 98-91, 99-90)
Preliminary card
- Light Heavyweight bout:
Isaac Chilemba vs. Jameson Bostic
- Chilemba defeated Bostic via Technical Knockout at 1:48 of the second round.
- Super Middleweight bout: Sean Monaghan vs. Kentrell Claiborne
- Monaghan defeated Claiborne via Technical Knockout at 0:54 of the forth round.
- Heavyweight bout:
Magomed Abdusalamov vs. Kevin Burnett
- Abdusalamov defeated Burnett via Technical Knockout at 1:18 of the first round.
- Super Welterweight bout: Steve Martinez vs. Jay Krupp
- Martinez defeated Krupp via Technical Knockout at 1:57 of the fifth round.
- Super Middleweight bout: J'Leon Love vs. Eddie Hunter
- Love defeated Hunter via unanimous Decision (60-53, 60-54, 60-54)
- Super Welterweight bout: Boyd Melson vs. Russ Niggemyer
- Melson defeated Niggemyer via unanimous Decision (59-55, 60-54, 60-53)
- Middleweight bout:
Israel Duffus vs. Troy Artis
- Artis defeated Duffus via Technical Knockout at 2:03 of the third round.
- Super Welterweight bout: Kevin Rooney Jr vs. Danny Lugo
- Lugo defeated Rooney via unanimous Decision (37-39, 37-39, 37-39)
Result
Martinez defeated Barker via Knockout at 1:29 of the eleventh round. Barker had some success early in the fight, landing some jabs and a few straight rights that broke Martinez's nose in the fourth round. But from the fifth round on, Martinez dominated the fight behind three- and four-punch flurries that left Barker covering up for most of the bout.
Through 10 rounds, judges Lynn Carter (96-94), Victor Loughlin (97-94) and Alejandro Roche (99-91) all had Martinez ahead.
Reported fight earnings
- Sergio Martinez $1,500,000 vs. Darren Barker ($400,000)
International Broadcasting
Country / Region Broadcaster ArgentinaTyC Sports 
AustraliaMain Event EnglandSky Sports 
HungarySport 2 
MexicoTelevisa United StatesHBO 
United KingdomSky Sports Notes
- ^ BoxRec Boxing Records. Boxrec.com. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.
- ^ Rafael, Dan. (2011-07-14) Sergio Martinez to fight Darren Barker. ESPN. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.
- ^ Ambrose, Dan. (2011-07-19) Sergio Martinez: I’ll never fight Cotto, because he’s been ducking me for 1.5 years. Boxing News 24. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.
- ^ (2010-04-18) Sergio Martinez beats Kelly Pavlik to become two-weight world champion. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.
- ^ Christ, Scott. (2010-11-20) Knockout of the Year: Sergio Martinez Blasts Paul Williams in Two. Bad Left Hook. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.
- ^ Coppinger, Mike. (2011-03-13) Middleweight champion Sergio Martinez TKOs Sergiy Dzinziruk. USA Today. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.
- ^ Rafael, Dan. (2011-02-23) Blog | Zbik approved for Chavez, not Martinez. ESPN. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.
- ^ Darren Barker vs. Affif Belghecham - BoxRec Boxing Encyclopaedia. BoxRec.com. Retrieved on 2011-09-16.
- ^ Terence, Dooley. (2011-04-28) Darren Barker is Coming Back To What He Knows. Boxing Scene. Retrieved on 2011-09-18.
- ^ Sukachev, Alexey. (2011-04-30) Barker Grabs EBU Crown With Spada Win at Olympia Hall. Boxing Scene. Retrieved on 2011-09-18.
External links
- HBO WCB - Oct.1 2011
- The Buzz: Martinez vs. Barker Press Conference (HBO)
- Martinez vs. Barker Official Fight Card from BoxRec
Preceded by
vs. Sergiy DzinzirukSergio Martinez's bouts
August 01, 2011Succeeded by
[To be determined]Preceded by
vs. Domenico SpadaDarren Barker's bouts
August 01, 2011Succeeded by
[To be determined]Categories:- Boxing fights
- 2011 in boxing
- History of boxing
- HBO Sports
- Sports in New Jersey
- Middleweight bout:
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