Common sense would dictate that a world title bout held in the neutral zone of Atlantic City between a formidable champion from Argentina and a little-known challenger from the UK is not going to cause a commotion at the box office.
But that’s the predicament that middleweight ruler Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez and unbeaten hopeful Darren Barker, who comes from the Barnet district in the outer rim of London, finds themselves in for their HBO bout this Saturday night.
Nerves in the Martinez camp are raw from criticism of this pairing. Lou DiBella blasted the media for “disrespecting” the Englishman and Sampson Lewkwicz rapped fight scribes for playing matchmaker.
But, to hear Hall Of Fame promoter Bob Arum tell it, Martinez is not being promoted and marketed properly and he can’t understand why this is.
