Former IBF middleweight champion Darren Barker (26-2, 16 KO’s) has reportedly retired from boxing following his 2nd round stoppage loss to Felix Sturm last December in Stuttgart, Germany. The 31-year-old Barker suffered a hip injury in the 2nd round, which made impossible for him to fight effectively. With Barker unable to put the full weight on his injured hip, he ended up getting knocked to the canvas twice by two clubbing shots from Sturm before Barker’s corner threw in the towel to have the contest halted.
For Barker, this was his 2nd hip injury and a clear signal that it might be wise for him to hang up the gloves. Barker had a rematch clause in his contract to fight Sturm again, and he likely would have gotten a nice payday out of the fight. However, it’s possible that Barker might have had a tough time making it through a grueling training camp, and more importantly passing a physical to be allowed into the ring to face Sturm for a second time.
Before Tyson Fury wasted a lot of time trying to get a fight against David Haye, he was ranked high by the WBC and within position to compete for the WBC heavyweight title. But with two fights against Haye falling through, Fury now finds himself having been dropped to No.8 by the World Boxing Council, and he’s nowhere near getting a crack at that belt. Needless to say, Fury’s not happy about it and he complained at length about it on 
Dereck Chisora says he’ll smash through big-hitting Klitschko clone Andriy Rudenko on Saturday 15th February at London’s Copper Box Arena to keep in line for a potential world title shot this year.
Matchroom Sport promoter Eddie Hearn is looking at potentially the end of his fighter WBO lightweight champion Ricky Burns’s 3-year reign as the World Boxing Organization 135 lb. champion when he steps inside the ring to fight the unbeaten but still largely untested Terence Crawford (22-0, 16 KO’s) on March 1st at the Scottish Exhibition Centre, in Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom.