It may have taken him some time, but Kenneth Sims Jr. has finally figured it out. After picking up the second loss of his career against Samuel Teah, Sims has racked up seven consecutive wins.

Now, the 30-year-old is exactly where he wants to be. With the WBA ranking him number one, a shot at the super lightweight title is closer than ever.

Currently, Rolando “Rolly” Romero holds the division's super title. Although Sims would love to get his hands on him, that appears incredibly unlikely. With Ryan Garcia bringing a ton of eyeballs and loads of cash to the table, the popular contender has essentially skipped to the front of the line, something Romero isn’t complaining about.

At first glance, Sims was ostensibly left out in the cold. But, seemingly out of nowhere, Ismael Barroso has begun making waves. So much so that Sims has taken notice.

Dust might be building on his birth certificate but at the age of 40, Barroso has plenty left in the tank. At the midway point of 2023, the Venezuelan was laughed at when he entered the ring against Romero. Yet, after dropping Romero in the third, Barroso was on cruise control. Unfortunately for him, however, referee Tony Weeks prematurely stepped in to call things off.

Barroso didn’t complain loudly, he simply asked the WBA sanctioning body for another opportunity. Although it wasn’t against Romero, he was placated this past weekend.

Ohara Davies needed a dance partner and so did Barroso. To make things interesting, the interim strap was on the line. During the lead-up, the same jokes centered around Barroso’s age were used over and over again. But while most were laughing, Barroso didn’t find anything funny. And, in just over a minute of the opening round, neither did Davies.

Sims had no choice but to applaud Barroso as he scored the first-round stoppage win. Praise and reverence aside, however, the 40-year-old will now have to deal with another youngin’ sooner, rather than later.

“I want to fight the old man now,” wrote Sims on his social media account. “Barroso on my hit list now.”