By Scott Gilfoid: Former middleweight title challenger Darren Barker (23-1, 14 KO’s) figures that he proved that he’s a world class fighter by hanging in there against WBC middleweight Diamond champion Sergio Martinez until getting stopped in the 11th round last year in October. The fact that Barker was able to last that long against the hard hitting Martinez makes Barker feel that he’s a world class fighter.

On September 8th, Barker will be facing 36-year-old little known fighter Simone Rotolo (34-3, 15 KO’s) for the vacant IBF Inter-Continental middleweight title at the Alexandra Palace, Muswell Hill, in London, United Kingdom.

For some odd reason, Barker sees this fight as another bout that can prove that he’s a world class fighter. Barker said to Sky Sports News “Trying to put on a good show to prove to everyone that I belong on the world stage.”

I think Barker, #8 IBF, is too preoccupied with thinking of himself as a world class fighter. Instead of putting that label on himself from fight to fight, he’s need to try and fight someone good and actually beat them instead of losing to them and then crowing about being a world class fighter. I mean, look at what Barker said about his loss to Martinez: “I really needed to prove to myself that I am world class…In that fight, I proved that I’m world class.”

Oh brother, Barker didn’t prove anything to me. All he did was stay on the outside all night long playing it safe. That’s not world class. It looked like Barker wasn’t even trying to win the fight, and was just looking to spoil and survive. When Martinez got sick of Barker’s lack of engagement, he finally went after him hard and knocked Barker out in the 11th round. That was the first and only time that Martinez really put in a real effort to knock Barker out, and that’s exactly what he did.