By Mark Vester

In a bit of a stunner, former three-division champion Marco Antonio Barrera (63-6, 42 KOs) has signed a promotional contract with Don King. Scribe Dan Rafael reports that last Tuesday, Barrera signed a five-year promotional agreement with King in Deerfield Beach, Florida.

A few months ago, Barrera cut his ties with Golden Boy Promotions, where he was being promoted since 2003. Barrera was also a partner in Golden Boy, but told the company that he wanted to cut loose in order to be on his own. Golden Boy would release him from his contract after a meeting in Los Angeles.

"Barrera wants to start his own promotional company, sign fighters and do regular shows on his own,” Richard Schaefer, CEO for Golden Boy, would tell BoxingScene.com during the time Barrera left.

While no specific reason has been given as to why Barrera would sign with King, a quest at lightweight could be one of them. Like his Mexican rival Erik Morales, Barrera has wanted to become the first Mexican fighter to win four major titles in four weight divisions. Signing with King could open up the door for a potential clash with WBA/WBO/IBF champion Nate Campbell. Campbell makes a defense against Joan Guzman on September 13. King is also involved with Yusuke Kobori, who recently won the WBA "regular" lightweight title. Campbell is the WBA's super champion because he holds more than one major title. 

Barrera stated a few weeks back that he planned to return before the end of the year. Taking his age and inactivity into account, Barrera said that a ring return in 2009 return would be too long of a wait. Barrera's brother Jorge told ESTO earlier in the month that Marco would decide his future by September and that several offers were on the table for Marco to return to the ring, which could be an indication that a play to sign with King was already in motion.

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