SYDNEY: Armenian-Australian Vic Darchinyan last night turned into a modern-day "Marrickville Mauler" when he crushed Eric Barcelona with a broken hand to win in the weight division Jeff Fenech made famous.

Now owning and training out of Fenech's former Marrickville gym, Darchinyan won a 12-round war against Barcelona to seal his place among the great Australian boxers with world titles in different divisions.

To add to his swag of super flyweight titles, the Raging Bull last night took home the IBO bantamweight title after a classic fight against the tough Filipino who has never been knocked out. Darchinyan said his broken left hand stopped him from tapping into his famed and feared power. "I was taking it easy," he said.

"After every punch I had to take a rest. My hand just didn't recover and it hurt every time I threw a punch. I was really rushing for the knock-out and I didn't take my time looking for it. I am pretty unhappy with my performance."

In a bout that saw both fighters land and take heavy blows, Darchinyan knocked his opponent down in the fifth and 11th rounds but could not land the killer blow with his injured hand. A four-punch combination in the fifth followed by a series of uppercuts and a short right was one of the night's highlights.

"I got him with some good shots," Darchinyan said.

"He is a tough guy. He took big punches in the head. It went 12 rounds and I think I won about 10. I don't think I was really that busy. If both hands were OK, I could have been busy but that was not the case. I couldn't throw the big ones."

The Armenian-born boxer will now rest up before continued his assault on world title belts.

"I will take a couple of weeks of now. And get my hands right and then come back for more."

His record now stands at 35 wins and three loses.

Earlier in the night, the man credited with putting the steel back into Jarryd Hayne made short work of his opponent in a quickfire firefight. After weathering the best of his opponent's punches, Willie Felipe unleashed with a heavy right that floored Andre Popovic for a round one knock out.

In another short but brutal fight Scott Lewis - best known for beating Cowboys prop Carl Webb senseless - was stopped in the first round by Mostyn Nieman. "Schooner Scotty" Lewis had no answer for Nieman's power with the heavyweight sending the prison guard to the canvas with two lethal left body rips.

After an 11-month sabbatical, Willie Kickett re-ignited his career with a points decision over Roy Tua Manihuruk. Kickett looked sharp in his return bout with his opponent having no answer to the Perth star's speed and accuracy.

 

ROUND 1 FOOTAGE BELOW, WITH ARMENIAN COMMENTARY