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Sunday, March 05, 2006
One punch ends fight
Vic Darchinyan’s brute power prevailed over Diosdado Gabi’s boxing skills to retain his world boxing titles in their title fight yesterday in California, USA.
With his power punches taking a heavy toll on the Filipino challenger in the middle rounds, Darchinyan, an Australian of Armenian descent, embarked on a torrid offensive late in the eighth, setting up Gabi for the coup de grace at the 2:42 mark of the round.
First knockdown
After evading a combination of punches, Gabi dropped his hands, allowing an opening that Darchinyan immediately seized with his most lethal weapon – a straight left – that sent the Davao City native to his first knockdown as a professional.
Gabi got up at the count of nine, but with his glassy eyes and balance off, referee David Mendoza immediately ordered the stoppage of the fight.
It was Darchinyan’s third successful defense of his International Boxing Federation title, while he also kept his International Boxing Organization crown.
After ending Gabi’s 12-bout winning streak, Darchinyan said he was impressed by his challenger’s performance.
“I could not believe Gabi took so many punches,” Darchinyan, a southpaw like Gabi, told Boxingscene.com. “I was impressed. He is a really good fighter with an impressive jab.”
Gabi, who gave up at least three inches in height, effectively got away from the champion’s solid lefts in the opening rounds with well-placed jabs, but with his punches lacking sting, Darchinyan’s power began to take over.
Third loss
“I saw he was tough after the first few rounds, so I started to move around more and wait for openings,” Darchinyan said. “I gained more power with each round and felt stronger as the fight progressed.”
It was Gabi’s third loss against 26 wins (19 KOs) and one draw. Both his previous losses were WBC super-flyweight title fights.
Darchinyan extended his unblemished record to 25-0 with his 20th knockout win. (JCT)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (March 5, 2006 issue)
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