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By Cliff Rold - Friday’s result in Tokyo was no surprise, but it was in its way quite significant. Japan’s Shinsuke Yamanaka retained the WBC Bantamweight belt, maintaining his unbeaten mark and notching his first genuine marquee win.
Even in suffering his third loss in five fights, and third title failure at 118 lbs. since 2009, Darchinyan remains a high quality win. How much longer that remains true will be up to Darchinyan’s performances in the ring. Reports from Saturday indicate he carried himself well. As was the case last year against Anselmo Moreno, a taller, faster, and naturally bigger southpaw with an inclination to work off a long jab are too much for the 36-year old ****er to handle at this point.
The significance is not only about the career of Darchinyan. It is also about the future of the 118 lb. division. Darchinyan’s defeat is the latest nail in the coffin for what was a fantastic run at Bantamweight in recent years.
One wonders: can the division reload? Will it return to its too regular status in recent decades as just another location on the scale? Is the ride of recent years really over?
Given the results of Yamanaka-Darchinyan, here is what the new BoxingScene Top Ten at Bantamweight will look like when the full ratings update is released on Monday: [Click Here To Read More]
Even in suffering his third loss in five fights, and third title failure at 118 lbs. since 2009, Darchinyan remains a high quality win. How much longer that remains true will be up to Darchinyan’s performances in the ring. Reports from Saturday indicate he carried himself well. As was the case last year against Anselmo Moreno, a taller, faster, and naturally bigger southpaw with an inclination to work off a long jab are too much for the 36-year old ****er to handle at this point.
The significance is not only about the career of Darchinyan. It is also about the future of the 118 lb. division. Darchinyan’s defeat is the latest nail in the coffin for what was a fantastic run at Bantamweight in recent years.
One wonders: can the division reload? Will it return to its too regular status in recent decades as just another location on the scale? Is the ride of recent years really over?
Given the results of Yamanaka-Darchinyan, here is what the new BoxingScene Top Ten at Bantamweight will look like when the full ratings update is released on Monday: [Click Here To Read More]