Arbachakov, imo. Yuri's resume isn't the greatest, but he was a brilliant Fly, possibly one of the best H2H in the divisions history. Arce was an excellent fighter too, but as a light fly in his prime, I think Arbachakov may have been both slightly bigger and slightly better relative to their respective sizes.
Arbachakov, surely. Arce was a great warrior, but they are not in the same level in terms of skills, Arce was, btw, very slow handed for his weight. Yuri would probably **** him up with his much sharper punches.
I'll take Arbachakov to win against a game Arce who will be swarming all over him. Arce's aggressive style would give Arbachakov some fits but I think it'll eventually backfire on him when he gets hit with huge right hands. Arbachakov's counters and power shots would be enough to stop Arce down the stretch. Perhaps similar to Arguello vs Mancini.
Imagine if Yuri just started unloading pin-point bombs onto Acre and dispatched him quickly. I like Acre, used to love him but kind of of changed my tune watching the last few years of his career play out. Lots of "close" calls and some outright shenanigans with him milking fouls so bad it would make Hopkins proud. This content is protected
Arce was a lot of fun but I’d say he’d be made for Arbachakov who was a better boxer and more accurate puncher - I can see him dispatching Arce quickly or pummelling him over a longer course but I only see him winning and most likely by stoppage. Would be fun while it lasted though.
Interesting this one. My immediate thought was that I like Yuri for it, but wouldn't place a bet. I don't think there's a particularly big gap in class, pound-for-pound, and I'd probably rate Arce a Top-10 ATG Light Fly, whereas Arbachakov is a Top-20 Fly. Arbachakov really does look the part but his record, beyond Kittikasem (x2) and a green Sasakul, doesn't have a lot there. And, on paper, I would rate Arce's victory over Choi at around the same level as Arbachakov's over Kittikasem. (That said, Arbachakov's highlight reel KO is spectacular.) So, then there's the matter of size. Here I'd say there's a good chance that it's not that much of a problem, if any at all, for Arce to operate and perform well at 112, given that, even during the formative stage of his career, he regularly weighed in at 109 to 113. He also successfully campaigned for Championships at both Fly and Super Flyweight, later in his career. I think this a 50/50 bout. But, if I was absolutely forced to bet - it would be on Arbachakov, simply because he 'looked' better.
