Fight Insight Boxing Betting, Predictions, Schedule and Tickets at FightInsight.com.

This matchup reads like a monster flic: "The Raging Bull Meets King Kong." It won’t be a monster flic, but it may be one helluva fight. "The Raging Bull" Vic Darchinyan (32-1-1, 26 KOs) may not have one of the most original nicknames in the business. Fans of Jake LaMotta would actually be pissed.

But no one can deny that he is one of boxing’s most exciting fighters and is sure to unleash his full arsenal when he tries to lift Joseph "King Kong" Agbeko’s (26-1, 22 KOs) IBF bantamweight title this Saturday.

Since the lone defeat of his career, a crushing knockout loss at the very skillful hands of Nonito Donaire (21-1, 14 KOs) almost two years ago, the Raging Bull has been on a rampage. He’s moved up from flyweight to unify the super flyweight titles, capped off by a scintillating destruction of the ultra-skilled Christian Mijares. His power and resume will be unlike anything Agbeko has ever seen.

King Kong is no pushover, unless your name is Faye Wray, Jessica Lange or Naomi Watts. Darchinyan may not have the same effect this trio had but he’ll surely leave his mark. Look for him to drop his own brand of fireworks a week after Independence Day in the U.S. Although Agbeko has shown a very sturdy chin, good power and is the naturally bigger man, I feel that the competition gulf between the two men is extremely wide. This will spell doom for him.

Unlike King Kong the movie, the ultimate confrontation in this fight will take place in Sunrise, Florida rather than at the top of the Empire State Building. But just like the movie, King Kong will fall. Look for Vic Darchinyan to claim another title in a new division via 8th round knockout.

Don’t let Marcos Rene Maidana’s (25-1, 24 KOs) sparkling record fool you. I have a sneaking suspicion that he’s going to turn out like fellow Argentinian Walter Dario Matthysse (26-5, 25 KOs). Maidana, like Matthysse, is the perfect combination of an eye-catching high knockout percentage built up against largely unknown competition. The result: a perfect showcase fight for “Vicious” Victor Ortiz (24-1, 19 KOs) on June 27.

I’m excited about this fight, not because I think that it will be a pitched, back-and-forth battle. Rather, I’m looking forward to seeing Ortiz do his thing. Oftentimes, HBO and Showtime will roll the dice on a talented young fighter and come up snake eyes. I’d be shocked if that’s the case with Ortiz. He is almost too good to be true. He’s well-spoken, media savvy, and has the skills to pay the bills. Let’s enjoy him while he’s still on regular HBO and not HBO PPV. Yes, I’m cheap that way.

My only question about Ortiz is his chin. Not because I don’t think he has one, but it’s hard to know unless we see it tested. On paper, one would think that the hard-hitting Maidana is the perfect candidate to test it. In reality, he will not get a chance to. Look for Ortiz’s blinding speed and vicious power to lead to a highlight reel knockout victory in round six. If you think Maidana has a chance, I’d surely like to know why.

Just when you thought the heavyweight division couldn’t get any more confusing and ridiculously lame, get ready for Wladimir Klitschko versus Ruslan Chagaev next Saturday. Last month, Chagaev was forced to cancel his proposed bout with Nicolay Valuev for the second time due to a bout with a very personal health issue. I’ll spare you the details.

Last week, David Haye was forced to cancel his fight with Klitschko due to a back injury. And even worse, a third fight between Valuev and John "the Quiet Man" Ruiz has been mandated by the WBA.

Got all that?

I do not nor do I want to. What I want to see is the colorful and powerful David Haye facing Wladimir Klitschko as soon as possible. Instead we are left with Klitschko fighting a largely untested fighter in Chagaev (no health pun intended) with very little chance of springing an upset. To tell you how much HBO thinks of the fight, they are not picking it up.

As a matter of fact, the only picking up will be Chagaev’s body off the canvas after Klitschko knocks him out in round seven. Somewhere, Lennox Lewis is laughing about the sorry state of the heavyweights. The problem is that no one else is. Actually, we’re sleeping.

In the mythical matchup between David Haye-Maker and David Haye-Faker, round one goes to the Faker. Seriously, when I heard the news that David Haye was pulling out of his heavyweight title fight with Wladimir Klitschko, I assumed that it was an Internet rumor. Unfortunately, it was not. After talking so much trash about what he was going to do to Klitschko, even donning a tee-shirt depicting him with both Klitschkos’ heads in his hands, the last-minute fight cancellation is not a good look for Haye.

I am typically not one to question the validity of a fighter’s health or injured status, but the timing of Haye’s back injury announcement raises eyebrows, to say the least. Over the past few weeks, Haye was talking less and less, and even appeared less boisterous about his chances in their proposed June 20th showdown. Look, I do not think Haye is scared of Wladimir Klitschko. If he was, he would have never signed to fight him. But I do think he knows that he must be in peak physical condition in order to defeat him. I do not  think Haye’s peak will be enough to beat Klitschko anyway, but that is a topic for a future post.

Maybe Haye is legitimately hurt. Maybe he’s faking. Or maybe I’m just upset because I wanted to see him fight Wladimir Klitschko so badly. What I do know for sure is that I do not care to see Klitschko face off against Ruslan Chagaev. And I know that I am not alone in that sentiment.

At some point, the real David Haye-maker will stand up and face one of the Klitschkos. Let’s hope it’s sooner than later, for the sake of the gloomy heavyweight division and boxing fans worldwide. 

Alas, after a few weeks of one-sided fights and meaningless alphabelt face-offs, June 13 can’t come sooner. For my Boriqua friends and many others, the day will be a festive moment, landing on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day Parade in New York City. For my fellow boxing fans, it represents an annual show at Madison Square Garden, starring Puerto Rico’s leading boxer. Felix Trinidad started the tradition in the 90’s and Miguel Cotto (33-1, 27 KOs) has carried on the tradition. 

This all sounds like a little too much for the Ghanaian-born Joshua Clottey (35-2, 20 KOs) to overcome, right?

I think so, but it may not be as daunting as it appears. Although Clottey will be facing Cotto in his "home away from home" at the Garden, he won’t be too far from his adopted hometown of the Bronx, NY. Expect Clottey’s rooting section to be easily drowned out by Cotto’s fans, but don’t expect him to be psyched out fighting in the heart of New York City on the eve of Nuyoricans’ biggest party.

Clottey’s biggest concern will be between those ropes, not with the crowd. In Cotto, he’ll be facing the most skilled opponent of his career. Cotto will also be the hardest puncher and most accomplished fighter that he’s faced. A resume that includes Antonio Margarito (who they both lost to) and victories over current or former champions including Ricardo Torres, Paul Malignaggi, Carlos Quintana, Zab Judah (Clottey owns one too), and Shane Mosley is surpassed by few.

Cotto is a solid favorite in this fight but he’s facing a legitimate, strong welterweight in his physical prime in Clottey. It will be interesting to see how Cotto responds to his first real challenge since his blood-letting at the "illegally wrapped" hands of Antonio Margarito. His tune-up against the over-matched Michael Jennings in February was merely a televised sparring session. Clottey is no sparring partner. He will actually punch back, and with bad intentions. He will block punches. His "ear-muff" defense is often tighter than security around President Obama.

However, when it’s all said and done, I predict that Miguel Cotto will be too dynamic an offensive fighter for the often-methodical Clottey to overcome. And the partisan Madison Square Garden will give him a significant "home-ring" advantage if the fight goes to the scorecards.

Miguel Cotto Will Emerge Victorious Via Hard-Fought Unanimous Decision Over 12 Rounds. What do you think?