Undisputed super flyweight world champion Vic Darchinyan said he was surprised at fighting spirit of his rival Jorge Arce.

"He surprised me," Darchinyan said. "I didn't expect him to fight like he did. He proved to me he was a strong fighter."

Meanwhile, Nonito Donaire, who inflicted the only defeat on Darchinyan in July 2007, commended Arce for "fighting with heart" and said Darchinyan "was the same."

Donaire said Darchinyan "looked the same, fought exactly the same, when I fought him aside from him not being too aggressive as he usually was and it would have been pretty much the same result," boxingscene.com reports.