DARCHINYAN VOWS TO KEEP SUPER FLYWEIGHT BELTS
(AFP)
10/12/09
RANCHO MIRAGE, California – Australia’s Vic Darchinyan vowed to defend
his super flyweight world titles in a desert duel with Mexico’s Tomas
Rojas on Saturday.
The Armenian-born Darchinyan, disappointed in a bamtamweight title
bid in July, said there’s no way Rojas will take his World Boxing
Council and World Boxing Association super flyweight belts.
"I am a fully loaded gun and will shoot him down with my boxing
skills," Darchinyan said.
Darchinyan is the favorite, despite dropping a unanimous points
decision to Ghana’s International Boxing Federation bantamweight
champ Joseph Agbeko.
In his super flyweight comfort zone, Darchinyan has already won once
this year, punishing Mexico’s Jorge Arce for 11 rounds before the
fight was stopped on doctor’s advice.
A battered Arce was hospitalized overnight in the wake of that fight
in Anaheim, California, in February.
Darchinyan, who boasts a record of 32-2-1 with 26 knockouts, had
unified the super flyweight titles before moving up to fight Agbeko.
He scoffed at Rojas’ assertion this week that the belts would go to
the challenger.
"Team Rojas can believe what they want to believe," Darchinyan said.
"They say they are going to take me out and take my belts?
"How does he figure that when I have beaten every opponent he has
fought?"
That includes, perhaps most notably, Arce – who posted a technical
knockout victory over Rojas in 2007. Rojas brings a record of 32-10
with 22 knockouts to the bout.
The fight at Agua Caliente casino is on the undercard of the light
welterweight clash between unbeaten Timothy Bradley and Lamont
Peterson, for Bradley’s lightly regarded World Boxing Organization
title.
"I’m willing to die for that title," said Bradley, who brings a
record of 24-0 (11 KOs) to the fight just outside his hometown of
Palm Springs, California. "I’ve got to have it.
"I know I’m going to hell and back to get it because Lamont Peterson
(27-0, 13 KOs) is a great fighter."
The hard-working Bradley burst to prominence in 2008 with a light
welterweight title victory over Junior Witter.
He followed with a gritty decision over Kendall Holt – in which he
survived two knockdowns – and an impressive display against Nate
Campbell that was eventually classed a no contest because of a
head-butt that caused a cut.