Darchinyan To Defend Against Arce
Feb. 7 On SHOWTIME

            A must-see matchup that fans, media and the fighters themselves have been clamoring for will take place when two of boxing’s biggest little men and hardest punchers, Vic Darchinyan and Jorge Arce, clash on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2009, live on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING (SHOWTIME, 9 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast).

Darchinyan’s newly acquired 115-pound International Boxing Federation (IBF), World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Association (WBA) world titles will be on the line.

The once-beaten Darchinyan (31-1-1, 25 KOs), of Sydney, Australia, by way of Armenia, will be making his first defense since unifying the 115-pound division with a demonstrative ninth-round knockout over Mexico’s Cristian Mijares Nov. 1, 2008, on SHOWTIME.

Darchinyan, who entered the ring as the IBF champion, walked out with Mijares’ WBC and WBA belts after blowing away the favored champion in a career-defining performance.  

The popular, crowd-pleasing Arce (51-4-1, 39 KOs), of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico, is the current WBA interim super flyweight champion and is a former WBC 115-pound and WBO 108-pound titleholder.

Arce has been victorious in five consecutive fights, including a fourth-round TKO over Isidro Garcia Nov. 1, 2008, to capture the interim WBA strap, and has won 31 out of his last 32. The only loss during his scintillating run came on a 12-round decision to Mijares on April 14, 2007.

The 12-round world title fight, co-promoted by Gary Shaw Productions, LLC, and Bob Arum’s Top Rank, Inc., will take place at a site to be announced.