Joseph_Diaz

Joseph Diaz

Joseph Diaz

American boxer

For the Senegalese Olympic sprinter, see Joseph Diaz (athlete).

Joseph "JoJo" Pedroza Diaz Jr. (born November 23, 1992) is a Mexican-American professional boxer who held the WBC interim lightweight title from July 2021 to December 2021. He also held the IBF super featherweight title from 2020 to February 2021 and challenged once for the WBC featherweight title in 2018. At regional level, he held the WBC-NABF, and WBO-NABO featherweight titles between 2015 and 2018. As an amateur he competed at the 2012 Olympics as a bantamweight.[1]

Quick Facts Born, Nationality ...

Early life and education

Joseph is of Mexican descent.[2] He attended Kranz Intermediate at the age of 12–14. He is left-handed and fights southpaw. As a child he played baseball but took up boxing to learn self-defense. He is coached by his father.[3] He attended South El Monte High School.

Amateur career

Prior to the Olympic Trials, he was the two-time reigning national champion at bantamweight that included a win over Antonio Nieves.[4] Diaz became the first American boxer to qualify for the 2012 Olympics by becoming a quarter-finalist at the 2011 World Championships, where he defeated both 2004 Olympic silver medalist Worapoj Petchkoom of Thailand and former world championship bronze medalist Óscar Valdez of Mexico but lost to Lázaro Álvarez.[5] Díaz was the 2011 U.S. National Champion at featherweight at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.[6] He fought in the 2010-11 World Series of Boxing

At the 2012 Summer Olympics he beat Pavlo Ishchenko, but ran into Alvarez in his second fight and lost again.

World Series of Boxing record

1 Win, 1 Loss
Result Record Team Opponent (Team) Score Date Location Notes
Loss 1–1 Los Angeles Matadors Mexico Braulio Ávila (Mexico Guerreros) 0-3 2011-04-13 United States Los Angeles, U.S.
Win 1–0 Los Angeles Matadors Germany Ronny Beblik (Memphis Force) 3-0 2011-02-28 United States Memphis, U.S.

Professional career

Featherweight

Diaz made his professional debut in 2012 against Vincent Alfaro, winning by unanimous decision over four rounds and also scored a knockdown in the fourth. On May 9, 2015, Diaz defeated Giovanni Delgado via unanimous decision on the undercard of the Canelo Álvarez vs James Kirkland fight. He stepped up competition against veteran Rene Alvarado in a fight televised on HBO Latino in July 2015 and on December 18, Diaz Jr. defeated Hugo Partida and earned the WBC-NABF featherweight title.[7] He went on to defend the title multiple times, before challenging Gary Russell Jr. for the WBC featherweight title on May 19, 2018, at the MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland. Diaz was unsuccessful, losing a unanimous decision to scores of 117–111, 117–111, 115–113.[8]

Super featherweight

On January 30, 2020, Diaz defeated IBF super featherweight champion Tevin Farmer by unanimous decision with scores of 115–113, 115–113, and 116–112 to claim his first world title. After the fight, Diaz praised his opponent, saying "Tevin Farmer is a hell of a fighter, guys. I thank him for giving me this opportunity."[9]

Diaz's first defense of his IBF super featherweight title was scheduled for February 13, 2021 against Shavkat Rakhimov. However, he was stripped of the title when he missed weight, weighing 3.6 lbs over the 130 lb limit. As a result, the fight still went ahead, but Diaz was fined $100,000 for missing weight, which represented 20% of his purse. The money was split evenly between Rakhimov and the California State Athletic Commission.[10] They fought to a majority draw, with scores of 115–113 Diaz, 114–114, 114–114.[11]

Lightweight

Diaz vs. Fortuna

Following his draw with Shavkat Rakhimov, Diaz moved up to the lightweight division which he promised would be his best weight, where he fought Javier Fortuna for the vacant WBC interim lightweight title on July 9, 2021. Diaz was docked a point in the fourth round for hitting behind the head, but nonetheless emerged as the victor via unanimous decision, with scores of 117–110, 116–111 and 115–112.[12]

Diaz vs. Haney

On October 8, 2021, it was announced that Diaz would be defending his WBC interim lightweight title against its previous owner, undefeated Ryan García, in Los Angeles on November 27.[13] However, on October 15, Mike Coppinger of ESPN revealed that García had suffered a hand injury and that the fight would be postponed.[14] This led to back and forth on social media between Diaz and Devin Haney, the full WBC lightweight champion, culminating in an official announcement on November 3 that Diaz would now be challenging for Haney's full world title on December 4, instead of defending his interim title against García.[15]

Diaz vs. Duarte

On April 27, 2024 in Fresno, CA, Diaz is scheduled to face Oscar Duarte in a 10-round bout.[16]

Super Lightweight

February 15, 2024 in Commerce, CA, Diaz was scheduled to face Jesus Antonio Perez Campos at super lightweight.[17] He lost the fight by split decision.[18]

Professional boxing record

More information 39 fights, 33 wins ...
More information No., Result ...

See also

References

  1. [1]
    "Boxing: U.S. Men - Boxing News | NBC Olympics". Archived from the original on May 15, 2012. Retrieved May 14, 2012.
  2. [2]
    Corrales, Danny (2016-03-24). "No Hablo Espanol with Boxer Joseph 'Jo Jo' Diaz". Espn.com. Retrieved 2018-09-15.
  3. [3]
    Kevin Baxter (2012-05-07). "Boxer Joseph Diaz Jr.'s biggest motivation is helping his family - latimes". Articles.latimes.com. Retrieved 2016-02-20.
  4. [4]
    "Joseph Diaz Jr. - Top Amateur Focuses on London - Boxing News". Boxingscene.com. 2011-07-30. Retrieved 2016-02-20.
  5. [5]
    "Diaz Becomes First American to Qualify for London - Boxing News". Boxingscene.com. 2011-10-04. Retrieved 2016-02-20.
  6. [6]
    "California Leaves Its Mark on The Olympic Trials - Boxing News". Boxingscene.com. 2011-08-06. Retrieved 2016-02-20.
  7. [7]
    "Joseph Diaz Jr. Faces Hugo Partida For NABF Title - Boxing News". Boxingscene.com. 2015-11-24. Retrieved 2016-02-20.
  8. [8]
    "Russell Jr. tops Diaz Jr. via unanimous decision". ESPN.com. 2018-05-20. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  9. [9]
    Christ, Scott (2020-01-30). "Joseph Diaz Jr takes IBF title from Tevin Farmer by decision". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  10. [10]
    "Diaz misses weight, loses belt before title fight". ESPN.com. 2021-02-12. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  11. [11]
    "Diaz Jr. vs. Rakhimov results: JoJo Diaz and Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov battle to a majority draw | DAZN News UK". DAZN. 14 February 2021. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  12. [12]
    "Diaz beats Fortuna in impressive lightweight debut". ESPN.com. 2021-07-10. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  13. [13]
    Esco, Wil (2021-10-08). "Ryan Garcia reaches terms with Joseph Diaz Jr for November 27 fight". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
  14. [14]
    "Hand injury forces postponement of Garcia-Diaz". ESPN.com. 2021-10-15. Retrieved 2021-10-24.
  15. [15]
    Stumberg, Patrick L. (2021-11-03). "Devin Haney vs Joseph Diaz Jr official, December 4th in Las Vegas". Bad Left Hook. Retrieved 2021-11-06.
  16. [16]
    Iskenderov, Parviz (13 April 2024). "Oscar Duarte vs Joseph Diaz joins Ramirez-Barthelemy undercard". FIGHTMAG.
  17. [17]
    Iskenderov, Parviz (25 January 2024). "Joseph Diaz faces Jesus 'Ricky' Perez in February in Commerce, CA". FIGHTMAG.
  18. [18]
    Iskenderov, Parviz (16 February 2024). "Jesus Perez takes decision against Joseph Diaz in Commerce, CA - Photos". FIGHTMAG.
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