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At Tacoma, Wash. (Showtime): Dimitri Kirilov vs. Vic Darchinyan, 12 rounds, for Kirilov's IBF junior bantamweight title
As excited as I am about Clottey/Judah, I am thinking that this will be the better of the two big fights tonight. I have gone back and forth on the outcome, but I have finally settled on a KO win for Darchinyan. Big surprise, right? Yeah, I was really going out on a limb. There are still questions about Darchinyan in the wake of his KO loss to Nonito Donaire, but I think he will answer a lot of them against a skilled boxer with the movement and chin to make him work. I can see Vic getting frustrated and coming in awkwardly and walking into a shot, but then again when is he not awkward. I don't think Kirilov has the power to make him pay like Donaire did. In each guy's last fight, they got a questionable draw, but Darchinyan's was against the better opponent, Z Gorres in Gorres' hometown in the Philippines. It was a fight which Vic clearly won, but his three knockdowns were ruled slips. Kirilov, on the other hand, struggled to eek out a draw against a much less heralded guy coming in with seven losses. Darchinyan throws big power punches with that left hand that even the most skilled guys just don't see coming and I think that's what he'll do tonight as he catches up to him in the seventh or eighth round.

As excited as I am about Clottey/Judah, I am thinking that this will be the better of the two big fights tonight. I have gone back and forth on the outcome, but I have finally settled on a KO win for Darchinyan. Big surprise, right? Yeah, I was really going out on a limb. There are still questions about Darchinyan in the wake of his KO loss to Nonito Donaire, but I think he will answer a lot of them against a skilled boxer with the movement and chin to make him work. I can see Vic getting frustrated and coming in awkwardly and walking into a shot, but then again when is he not awkward. I don't think Kirilov has the power to make him pay like Donaire did. In each guy's last fight, they got a questionable draw, but Darchinyan's was against the better opponent, Z Gorres in Gorres' hometown in the Philippines. It was a fight which Vic clearly won, but his three knockdowns were ruled slips. Kirilov, on the other hand, struggled to eek out a draw against a much less heralded guy coming in with seven losses. Darchinyan throws big power punches with that left hand that even the most skilled guys just don't see coming and I think that's what he'll do tonight as he catches up to him in the seventh or eighth round.