Murray Targets Barker After News of Wright vs Macklin
By Terence Dooley
News that Matthew Macklin will face Winky Wright (a contest that Macklin discussed exclusively with Boxingscene last July) on April 9 at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas has left British boss Darren Barker, the mandatory challenger for Macklin's EBU middleweight title, out in the cold. While Macklin sets his sights on ensuring it won't be all Wright on the night, another British middleweight has volunteered to step into the breach and accommodate Barker.
St Helens's Martin Murray has told The Liverpool Echo that he is ready and waiting for the call should Barker, inactive for nine months, decide that the 28-year-old is next in line. “I've heard the whispers about Macklin taking a fight with Wright,” confirmed the 21-0 (8) fighter.
“And hopefully this means I get a shot at Barker's British title, but you just never know what promoters have got in mind. Darren Barker is a quality fighter and I would be happy to share a ring with him and happy to fight him.”
Martin netted the Commonwealth and WBA International middleweight titles in his last two bouts, wins over Peter Mitrevski Jr and Carlos Nascimento respectively; the 28-year-old has repeatedly expressed an interest in taking on Macklin or Barker and he has the backing of Ricky Hatton's promotional company.
A few British fans expressed their disappointment when Macklin decided to take on former pound-for-pounder Wright, they will probably never get to a see a Macklin-Barker showdown, especially if the Birmingham-born fighter defeats Winky – a Barker-Murray tussle may prove to the next best option.
Barker recently received a commendation from a British judge for the bravery he showed when tackling a group of troublemakers last summer. Darren tried to prevent two men from assaulting a third only to be set upon by ten men. Thankfully, three of the offenders were caught and ordered to pay damages to the brave boxer, who will hopefully return to the ring early in 2011.
As for Macklin, the howls of derision that greeted the news of his fight against Wright are widely off-beam. A US showcase against a former world champion in a grand venue is a massive lure and the type of fight that, rightly or wrongly, will lead to a world title shot.
Sure, Winky has nearly two years of inactivity under his belt and is coming off a defeat yet there was no shame in his losing to Paul Williams in 2009, nor in his catchweight, 170lb, reverse to Bernard Hopkins in 2007. Throw in a win over Ike Quartey and a draw with Jermain Taylor, when he was still Jermain Taylor, in 2006 and it is clear to see that a potential win over Wright, 51-5-1 (25), over in Vegas brings more to the table than a domestic showdown with Barker.
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