Originally Published: November 3, 2008
To Vic go the spoils: Darchinyan starches Mijares to unify 115-pound titles
Vic Darchinyan can talk smack with the best of them. He can now rub shoulders with the best 115-pound fighters in a world as well after wresting a pair of super flyweight titles from Cristian Mijares on Saturday.
AP Photo/Danny Moloshok Chris Farina/Top Rank AP Photo/Danny Moloshok Chris Cozzone /Fightwireimages.com Lars Baron/Bongarts/Getty Images Juergen Schwarz/AFP/Getty Images Chris Cozzone/Fightwireimages.com
Vic Darchinyan's superior power proved too much for Cristian Mijares, left, to handle. 
It's Junior time! Julio Cesar Chavez exacted revenge by outpointing Matt Vanda in Las Vegas.
Andre Dirrell thrilled fans in attendance by blasting through Victor Oganov in six rounds. 
"OK, who's next?" Nonito Donaire, above, is angling toward a fight with Jorge Arce.
Bad call: Joel Julio, left, accepted a mandatory fight with Sergei Dzindziruk -- and paid the price. 
Gift of jab: Felix Sturm, left, used his jab to perfection to stifle Sebastian Sylvester's attack.
Despite dropping a decision, Fernando Trejo, left, put Julio Diaz to work over 10 rounds.
A roundup of the past week's notable boxing results from around the world:
Ulises Solis W12 Nerys Espinoza
Retains a junior flyweight title
Scores: 118-107, 117-107, 115-109
Records: Solis, 28-1-2, 20 KOs; Espinoza, 25-5, 18 KOs
Rafael's remark: Solis just keeps rolling along. On Sunday, he gained his eighth defense since winning a 108-pound belt in January 2006. He's one of the most active titleholders in the sport, which could be why he's been so sharp in recent fights. Headlining on Azteca America in his native Mexico, Solis, 27, suffered a cut over his left eye and lost a point for a low blow in the second round. But he rebounded to drop Espinoza, 27, of Nicaragua, in the third round. Solis knocked him down again in the ninth, when Espinoza also lost a point for holding. All in all, it was another very solid outing for Solis, who is expected to make his next defense early next year against former titlist Brian Viloria.
Fernando Montiel W10 Alberto Rosas
Scores: Not available
Records: Montiel, 38-2-1, 28 KOs; Rosas, 27-5, 23 KOs
Rafael's remark: Mexico's Montiel, 29, holds a junior bantamweight title but took this nontitle match against Rosas, 23. Montiel got more than he bargained for. Although he emerged with the victory -- the scores were not read on the broadcast -- he worked hard for it. Rosas was awfully competitive even though he now has lost five of his past seven bouts. Rosas lost a point for a sixth-round head butt.
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Vic Darchinyan KO9 Cristian Mijares Unifies three junior bantamweight titles |
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Records: Darchinyan, 31-1-1, 25 KOs; Mijares, 36-4-2, 14 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: In the defining moment of his career, Australian-based Armenian Darchinyan delivered big-time. Before facing Mijares, Darchinyan engaged in his normal relentless trash talk, promising to smash his opponent, break him in half and knock him out. This time, Darchinyan, 32, delivered in stunningly one-sided fashion, reducing the top-10 pound-for-pound unified titlist to dust. Mijares had gained great respect from boxing fans and the media with a series of impressive performances. He had twice defeated respected Japanese titleholder Katsushige Kawashima, dominated Jorge Arce, outpointed 2000 U.S. Olympian Jose Navarro and unified two belts with a strong performance against Alexander Munoz in May. In a poll of 32 boxing media, Mijares was the overwhelming favorite (26-6) to add Darchinyan's alphabet belt to his growing collection because of his superior boxing skills and defense. But that's why they fight the fights. Darchinyan came out aggressively and never let up as the Mexican Mijares, 27, never established his jab and never utilized his four-inch height advantage. Frankly, he fought a stupid fight, and he paid dearly for it. Darchinyan dropped Mijares hard with a left uppercut in the first round and rolled to victory. Going into the ninth round, Darchinyan led 79-72 on all three scorecards (although it's hard to find even a single round to give Mijares) before finishing him with a flush left hand at the end of the round. The referee didn't even bother to count. Darchinyan, who earned a resounding victory, became the first 115-pounder to unify three of the major titles in only the division's third unification fight in its 28-year history. Darchinyan has climbed all the way back from his July 2007 low point, when Nonito Donaire drilled him in the fifth round with one punch to take his flyweight belt. Darchinyan then moved up in weight and eventually won a belt with a dominant fifth-round knockout performance against Dimitri Kirilov in August. He now reigns as the No. 1 junior bantamweight. But Fernando Montiel, the remaining titleholder, still lurks and would be a tremendous battle. And because Donaire, who defended his flyweight belt elsewhere Saturday, plans to move up, it sure sets the stage for an intriguing rematch if promoters Gary Shaw and Bob Arum, who mix like oil and water, can find a way to get together long enough to make the fight. The fighters and fans deserve it. |
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Andre Dirrell TKO6 Victor Oganov |
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Records: Dirrell, 17-0, 12 KOs; Oganov, 28-2, 28 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: In June 2007, Dirrell, 26, outpointed Curtis Stevens on HBO in a meeting of prospects, but the fight was so utterly putrid to watch because of the running, negative style with which Dirrell boxed. Promoter Lou DiBella didn't even bother to exercise his options on Dirrell, who was criticized brutally for his performance. Since then, however, Dirrell, a 2004 U.S. Olympic bronze medalist, has looked better. In two Showtime bouts, he tried to put the Stevens fight behind him in scoring an exciting fifth-round knockout of Anthony Hanshaw in May and a dominant fourth-round stoppage of Mike Paschall in August. Against Oganov, Dirrell once again put on an entertaining and dominant performance against the hard-charging, big-punching Oganov. Dirrell was way too fast and powerful for him to handle. Dirrell might be the best fighter in boxing when it comes to throwing a meaningful jab while going backward. Oganov never could find him with a really meaningful punch, while Dirrell was landing hard shots and had opened a bad gash over Oganov's right eye. Finally, early in the sixth round, Dirrell wobbled Oganov with an uppercut and right hook. That was enough for referee Ray Corona to step in and stop the fight before Oganov got seriously hurt. If Dirrell keeps fighting like this rather than like the guy who faced Stevens, he has a bright future and will be a nightmare for many top fighters. |
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Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. W10 Matt Vanda Scores: 99-91, 98-92, 97-93 |
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Records: Chavez Jr., 38-0-1, 29 KOs; Vanda, 39-8, 22 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: On July 12, Chavez barely survived to win a split decision against Vanda in Mexico. Vanda nearly knocked him out late in the fight, and after it was over, Chavez slumped to his stool and looked like a beaten man. Then came the ultimate insult: His own crowd booed the decision. Chavez said he was ill before the fight, which is why he had so much trouble. In the rematch, which headlined a Top Rank pay-per-view card at Mandalay Bay, Chavez was in much better form, seemingly lending credibility to his claim of illness the previous time out. With his famous father, icon Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., at ringside, Junior dominated Vanda, the heavily tattooed fighter from Minnesota who was tattooed with punches all night. Chavez, 22, in his first Las Vegas main event, controlled the action throughout and won the numerous exchanges with Vanda, 30, who gave a good effort. Unlike the first fight, when Chavez was gasping through the final round, he still was going strong at the final bell. |
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Nonito Donaire TKO6 Moruti Mthalane Retains a flyweight title |
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Records: Donaire, 20-1, 13 KOs; Mthalane, 22-2, 15 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: Donaire made his second title defense but was fighting for the first time in 11 months after breaking with promoter Gary Shaw and signing with Top Rank. He looked a little rusty but came through against Mthalane, 26, a tough mandatory challenger from South Africa. It was a competitive bout, but Donaire was a bit quicker. In the sixth round, he opened a cut on Mthalane's left eyelid. Referee Joe Cortez, on advice of the ringside doctor, called off the fight. Because Donaire won and Jorge Arce also retained his junior bantamweight belt on the card, Top Rank is making plans for an Arce-Donaire bout next year, for which Donaire would move up in weight. It would be an interesting bout, but wouldn't a Donaire rematch with new unified junior bantamweight champion Vic Darchinyan be more interesting? Donaire, after all, knocked Darchinyan out last year to win a flyweight belt, but Darchinyan has established himself as the king of the junior bantamweights. Whatever Donaire does, the 25-year-old Filipino has a number of intriguing fights that he and manager Cameron Dunkin can pursue. |
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Jorge Arce TKO4 Isidro "Chino" Garcia Retains an interim junior bantamweight title |
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Records: Arce, 51-4-1, 39 KOs; Garcia, 25-6-2, 8 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: On Sept. 15, Arce, of Mexico, claimed an interim belt by stopping Rafael Concepcion in a brutal battle, so it was surprising that he was able to make such a quick turnaround after such a punishing fight of the year candidate. But Arce, 29, came through in style against countryman Garcia, 32, a former flyweight titleholder who dropped his third fight in four outings. Arce, who always is entertaining to watch, floored Garcia with a body shot in the fourth, and the fight very well could have ended right there. Garcia showed heart to continue but couldn't go on for long before referee Tony Weeks stepped in during Arce's follow-up attack. Arce's victory and flyweight titlist Nonito Donaire's victory on the card set the stage for a fight that Top Rank has in the works for the early part of 2009 -- a junior bantamweight meeting possibly in Donaire's native Philippines. That figures to be a very good fight if it comes off. And also keep this in mind: Arce, as interim titleholder, is the mandatory challenger for new unified champion Vic Darchinyan. |
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Lamont Peterson W10 Lanardo Tyner Scores: 99-90, 99-87, 98-91 |
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Records: Peterson, 26-0, 12 KOs; Tyner, 19-2, 11 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: In one of the most entertaining fights of Peterson's career, he routed the game Tyner for the lopsided decision in his second bout since signing with Top Rank. Peterson, 24, and Tyner, 33, went at it in the spirited fight. The fight was fun to watch because even though Tyner absorbed a lot of punches, he bulled forward throughout the bout and Peterson didn't back away. Peterson was in total command, and although he lost a point for a borderline low blow in the fourth round, it had no bearing on the outcome of the fight. Peterson is closing in on a title opportunity or at least a higher-profile fight on either HBO or Showtime. |
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Matvey Korobov TKO3 Mario Evangelista |
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Records: Korobov, 1-0, 1 KOs; Evangelista, 1-2-1, 1 KO |
| Rafael's remark: Top Rank has a tremendous history of identifying Olympians who have great pro potential, then signing them and building them into champions and stars. The company did it with Oscar De La Hoya after the 1992 Olympics, Floyd Mayweather in 1996 and Miguel Cotto in 2000, and Vanes Martirosyan is still on the rise after his appearance in the 2004 Games in Athens. Bob Arum thinks he has that guy from the 2008 Beijing Games: Korobov, 25, a two-time world amateur champion and Russian Olympian who lives in Florida. Managed by Cameron Dunkin and trained by two-time trainer of the year Dan Birmingham (who also trains Winky Wright and Jeff Lacy), Korobov made his professional debut at 165 pounds. He looked strong and poised as he took apart Evangelista, who was game but clearly unable to deal with Korobov's strength and southpaw style. Korobov did look a little stiff, but that obviously is something that Birmingham can work on. Top Rank will give Korobov a big push, and he should move quickly because he's a little older than many fighters who turn pro. He'll return to the ring on the Dec. 13 undercard of the third Kendall Holt-Ricardo Torres fight. Expect to see Korobov fighting about once a month until he has fought at least 10 fights. |
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Vanes Martirosyan KO1 Charles Howe |
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Records: Martirosyan, 22-0, 14 KOs; Howe, 17-5-2, 9 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: Martirosyan, 22, needed just 80 seconds to blow out Howe, 33, who previously had been stopped only in his second pro bout. He had gone the six-round distance in a loss to Cornelius "K9" Bundrage and went 10 rounds in a decision loss to John Duddy in his previous fight in June. So for Martirosyan to blast him in the first -- knocking him down with a right hand before finishing him moments later -- is a feather in his cap. |
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Felix Sturm W12 Sebastian Sylvester Retains a middleweight title Scores: 119-109, 118-110 (twice) |
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Records: Sturm, 31-2-1, 13 KOs; Sylvester, 29-3, 14 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: Jab, jab, jab. Repeat for 12 rounds. That is pretty much how Sturm, 29, dominated Sylvester, 28, in one of the most authoritative performances of his career. Facing his German countryman in a mandatory fight in which there was bad blood between the combatants, Sturm controlled matters from the outset, pumping a left jab in Sylvester's face and never letting up. The fighters were promoted by Germany's biggest rivals -- Sturm by Universum and Sylvester by Sauerland Event. Sylvester, the former European champion, tried to be aggressive but couldn't do much to get past Sturm's jab. The loss ended his eight-fight winning streak. The German dream match would be a showdown between titleholders Sturm and Arthur Abraham, but it seems unlikely. Universum and Sauerland Event have postured quite a bit over the years about that fight, but neither side seems very serious about making it. It's too bad. |
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Sergei Dzindziruk W12 Joel "Love Child" Julio retains a junior middleweight title Scores: 117-111, 116-112 (twice) |
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Records: Dzindziruk, 36-0, 22 KOs; Julio, 34-2, 31 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: Ohhhhhh, the Love Child. Instead of taking more money to fight southpaw Sergio Martinez for an interim title on HBO on Oct. 4, the former ESPN.com prospect of the year and his handlers elected to take their mandatory shot in Germany against German-based Ukrainian Dzindziruk, 32, a southpaw who posed a horrible style match for the 23-year-old power-punching Colombian. It appears as though they made the wrong decision, because Dzindziruk, making his fifth defense, got the result most folks figured he would, a unanimous decision. Main Event's attorney, Pat English, who was at ringside, said that many rounds were close and hard to score. But when you fight on the other guy's turf, those rounds usually favor the fighter on friendly territory. The aggressive Julio had some strong moments in the early rounds, but Dzindziruk's steady skills were the difference. Julio's two losses have been to slick boxing southpaws: Dzindziruk and former welterweight titlist Carlos Quintana. That should suggest one thing: no more lefties for the exciting Julio. |
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Daniel Ponce De Leon TKO4 Damian Marchiano |
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Records: Ponce de Leon, 35-2, 31 KOs; Marchiano, 15-6-1, 5 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: After six dominant title defenses, Ponce de Leon was crushed in the first round in June by rising star Juan Manuel Lopez. Returning home to Mexico for his first bout since 2003, the 28-year-old slugger got back on the winning track against Argentinean tough guy Marchiano, 29. Ponce de Leon dropped Marchiano in the fourth round, and his corner threw in the towel at 1:41. Marchiano lost for the fourth time in five fights but is as game as they come. All four defeats came against quality opponents: Ponce de Leon, Bernard Dunne, Silence Mabuza and Abner Mares. |
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Julio Diaz W10 Fernando Trejo Scores: 100-90, 99-91 (twice) |
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Records: Diaz, 36-4, 26 KOs; Trejo, 30-15-4, 18 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: Diaz, 28, a former lightweight titleholder looking for another shot, put in 10 solid rounds to pick up his second consecutive victory since yielding his belt to Juan Diaz via TKO in their October 2007 unification fight. Although the scores were lopsided, Diaz, who suffered a cut on his left eye in the sixth round, had to work hard against Trejo, 34, who lost his third in a row but put up a good fight in the Telefutura main event. Diaz, who is promoted by Sycuan Ringside Promotions, was on the Top Rank card as part of a two-fight agreement between the companies. Diaz made this tune-up fight to set the stage for a probable match early next year against blue-chip prospect Anthony Peterson, who is close to a title shot but needs the sort of serious test Diaz undoubtedly can provide. |
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Miguel Angel "Mikey" Garcia W8 Walter Estrada Scores: 77-74, 76-75 (twice) |
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Records: Garcia, 15-0, 12 KOs; Estrada, 30-7, 20 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: Garcia, out of the Oxnard, Calif., boxing hotbed, is the younger brother of retired former junior lightweight titlist Robert Garcia and has excellent potential. But he is a work in progress, as Colombia's Estrada, 33, showed. He dropped Garcia, 20, in the fourth round and gave him a tough fight. It was not an exciting fight, but Garcia surely learned some valuable lessons against Estrada, who once lost to Scott Harrison in a 2004 featherweight title bout. |
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Anselmo Moreno W12 Rolly Matsushita Retains a bantamweight title Scores: 120-108, 119-109, 118-110 |
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Records: Moreno, 24-1-1, 8 KOs; Matsushita, 25-7-1, 14 KOs |
| Rafael's remark: In May, Moreno pulled off a rare feat. As a foreign fighter, he went to Germany and won a decision as he claimed a belt from Wladimir Sidorenko. With the title, Moreno, 23, is enjoying fighting at home in Panama, where he has made both of his title defenses, including this lopsided winning effort against Matsushita, 25, a Japan resident born in the Philippines. |
Dan Rafael is the boxing writer for ESPN.com.
