VIC DARCHINYAN TO MOVE UP TO BANTAMWEIGHT FOR NEXT FIGHT
By Adrian Warren

Fox Sports
,8659,25 034338-23210,00.html
Feb 10 2009
Australia

February 10, 2009 AUSTRALIA’S Vic Darchinyan is poised to become
one of boxing’s busiest world champions as he prepares to move up
to bantamweight with titleholders from Asia, Africa and the Americas
among his potential opponents.

Returning to Australia on Tuesday, Darchinyan confirmed he intended
moving up to bantamweight after he retained his WBA, WBC and IBF
super flyweight titles with an eleventh round stoppage of Mexican
Jorge Arce in Los Angeles.

Formerly the IBF and IBO flyweight champion, Darchinyan is bidding
to become only the second Australian after Jeff Fenech to win world
titles in three divisions.

The belt-hungry 33-year-old had no intention of stopping at three
weight divisions.

"I want to be (champion in) three weight divisions, four, five,
I don’t want to go to bantamweight and stop," Darchinyan said at
Sydney Airport.

His win over Arce represented his third world title victory in just
six months.

Most champions settle for three fights in a year, but Darchinyan will
try and squeeze in four bouts before 2010.

However doctors have told Darchinyan he cannot box for 60 days after
suffering a cut near his right eye in last weekend’s contest.

Darchinyan’s manager Elias Nassar revealed he was looking at matching
his charge against either Japan’s WBC bantamweight world champion
Hozumi Hasegawa (25-2) or Ghana’s IBF bantamweight king Joseph Agbeko
(26-1).

Nassar said another potential opponent was Mexico’s Fernando Montiel
(38-2-1), who holds the WBO super flyweight title, but is moving up
to bantamweight.

"Montiel actually got in the ring and challenged Vic after the (Arce)
fight," Nassar said.

American cable television network Showtime is poised to broadcast
Darchinyan’s three scheduled fights this year.

They have expressed an interest in coming to Australia but Darchinyan
said he enjoyed fighting in America.

Darchinyan was adamant his convincing victory over three-division
champion Arce would consolidate his place among the world’s best
pound-for-pound fighters.

"I think I’ve got to be in the top ten pound-for-pound, but I don’t
want to be (just) top ten, I want to be closer to number one,"
Darchinyan said.

The Armenian-born Australian citizen still covets fights against two
of the men universally regarded among the world’s best pound-for-pound
boxers, super bantamweight Israel Vazquez and junior welterweight
Manny Pacquaio.

Vazquez has indicated he is set to move up another division but told
Darchinyan at a press conference prior to the Arce fight he would be
prepared to take on the Australian.

Big-hitting southpaw Darchinyan improved his professional record to
32-1-1 with 26 KOs with his win over Arce.