“RAGING BULL” MOVING  UP TO FACE “KING KONG”

NEW YORK (April 13, 2009) – In  what will be a brutal battle of pure power punchers, Vic “Raging Bull’’ Darchinyan will attempt to become a  world champion in a third weight class when he challenges International Boxing Federation (IBF) bantamweight champion Joseph “King Kong” Agbeko on Saturday, July 11, live on SHOWTIME (9 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the  west coast). The event is being  co-promoted by Don King Productions  and Gary Shaw Productions, LLC. Agbeko  (26-1,22 KOs), of New York by way of Ghana, will be making the second defense of  the 118-pound crown he won with a seventh-round TKO over Luis Perez in August 2007. A winner of  five in a row, Agbeko is coming off a 12-round decision over William Gonzalez on Dec, 11,  2008. Darchinyan  (32-1, 26 KOs) solidified his status as the No.  1 super flyweight in the world – and one of the top boxers pound-for-pound – with back-to-back impressive victories over Jorge Arce last Feb. 7 on SHOWTIME and Christian Mijares on Nov. 1, 2008,  on SHOWTIME. An  Australia-based Armenian, Darchinyan exited his signature victory over Mijares  with the IBF, World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Association (WBA)  115-pound belts. A former IBF flyweight champion, Darchinyan is appearing on  SHOWTIME for a ninth time. Agbeko,  a relentless, aggressive-minded slugger, will be making his third start in the  United  States and second on SHOWTIME.  His nickname is not really a nickname. “My name is Joseph King Kong Agbeko. That’s my real name,” he  said. “It’s on my birth certificate and my passport.’’ By any name, this  figures to be a dangerous assignment for Darchinyan, who’ s talked about moving  up in weight for a long time. “I’ll be ready and I’ ll  be stronger at 118,” he said. “Agbeko will feel my power, I promise you.