Darchinyan fills the Void
 By Gabriel Montoya, At Ringside (June 4, 2006)
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Photo © Tom Casino/SHOWTIME
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Filling in as the main event for what should have been one of the top fights of the year, Vic ‘Raging Bull’ Darchinyan stepped up to the plate as the main event replacement and stopped Luis ‘Titi’ Maldonado at 1:08 of the 8th round of his fourth IBF flyweight title defense. What boxing needed on this bust of a night, was someone, anyone to step and fill the void and The Raging Bull did just that, bringing out the heavy artillery and aggression that champions are made of.
For a venue that seats 22,000, the Thomas and Mack Center looked cavernous with a crowd of about 2,000 diehard fans. Considering the luster that was taken off this card by the withdrawal of the scheduled main event after Jose Lous Castillo failed to make weight for his rubbermatch against Diego Corrales, there was a surprising number of Australians (Darchinyan’s home country) and Armenians (The Raging Bull’s birth place) in the crowd. Drowning out cries of “Vamanos Titi!” were chants of “Darchinyan!“ as the action stepped up through the entertaining bout .
Round one was more a feel out round as both boxers looked to establish geography and jabs. Maldonado showed excellent footwork and a willingness to retreat when necessary against the bomb heavy and pressuring Darchinyan, but the 30-year-old 2000 Olympian took the first as Maldonado refused to let his hands go.
Round two saw the two combatants show a little too much respect as the blood deprived crowd who had seen two consecutive first round KO’s and a spirited 4 rounder began to get restless. Everyone in attendance knew this was as good as it gets and while they weren’t getting their money’s worth, they at least demanded a good showing from the new main event.
Round three saw the action step up as both found their range and find a home for their respective lefts and right leads. Darchinyan hit the deck after a Maldonado flurry that yielded nothing but a ref’s slippage ruling. In the fourth stanza Darchinyan began to take over and land his sneaky uppercut and right jab with more frequency. In the fifth the action came to close quarters as Maldonado and Darchinyan began to step it up and let their hands go, scoring with hooks, lead rights, and uppercuts. A big left uppercut by Darchinyan staggered Maldonado at the 0:10 mark but there wasn’t enough time for The Bull to capitalize. Round 6 saw Maldonado hit the deck from a left uppercut that he never saw coming. Darchinyan followed up and sent Titi to his knees. Darchinyan jumped on him and landed three solid lefts to close the round.
Round seven was the middle of the end as Titi went into survival mode with Darchinyan dropping his hands and taunting Titi to get him to open up. At the start of the 8th it was clear Darchinyan was looking to close in style as he opened up and landed virtually at will. Strafing Maldonado along the ropes, Joe ‘Fair but Firm‘ Cortez stepped in a little too quick for my taste to stop the inevitable.
With the win Darchinyan moves to 26-0 (21) and positions himself for bigger things. Hopefully we will see a Darchinyan versus Jorge Arce bout within the next year. It was admirable and refreshing to see two little men step in big time in a pressure filled main event and deliver. In a weekend where Jose Luis Castillo, and in a sense boxing in general, failed to deliver, Darchinyan did in spades.
With the loss Maldonado falls to 33-1-1 (25).
On the undercard Yuri Foreman, looking like he was auditioning for ‘Dancing with the Stars’, took a boring UD over Jesus Velverde. To call it a yawner would be an insult to yawners. Call it ‘Dancing with the Prospect’.
In an exciting four rounder, Jose Magallon defeated Abraham Esquivel by scores of 39-37, 40-36, and 39-37. The two shared a phone booth for four action packed rounds, trading shots at close quarters.
Christina Kwan was knocked out in 0:48 seconds. So much for the Kwans taking over women's boxing.
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