Jo Jo Diaz Targeting High-profile Lightweight Bout Next!
During his last tour of duty, one-time super featherweight champion Joseph “Jo Jo” Diaz (32-2-1, 15 KO’s) was outworked and outclassed en route to a unanimous decision loss. That bout, versus undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney, stood as only his second fight in the lightweight division. Having taken the proper time to gather himself, Diaz is now ready to resume taking tough challenges against top fighters such Shakur Stevenson and Ryan Garcia!
Following the thorough defeat however, Jo Jo would first fall back from the ring for almost one full year. Now, Diaz will first make his ring return versus William “Camaron” Zepeda Segura (26-0, 23 KO’s) on October 29.
EASY WORK
While undefeated, the Mexican-born Segura leaves a great deal to be desired. To begin, this will only be Camaron’s fifth fight in the United States. Next, the most recognizable name on his ledger belongs to the defeat-hoarding Rene Alvarado. In fact, Alvarado was on a three-fight losing streak when Segura beat him. So, granted all goes as planned, Jo Jo will enjoy a successful night in the ring upon his return. From the sounds of it, as he explained to IFL TV, Diaz is not expecting the toughest out available.
“I think that he is a lot slower than me and I think that my counter shots and accuracy is going to be one of the key factors, as well. I am going to be able to land some vicious blows, not only to the body but to the top, as well. He is going to feel my shots!”
THREE THE HARD WAY
Assuming that it does go his way, Jo Jo will then busy himself with securing the bigger names in the division.
“After I get rid of Zepeda [Segura], I definitely want a top dog! I want a guy like Shakur Stevenson; I would love to welcome Shakur Stevenson to 135-pounds, or Ryan Garcia, or Devin Haney again. Those are the three fights I told my manager that I want and hopefully we can get it made.”
FINGERS CROSSED
Truthfully speaking, both former unified 130-pound champion “Fearless” Shakur Stevenson (19-0, 9 KO’s) and Ryan “King Ry” Garcia (23-0, 19 KO’s) are tremendous match-ups for Diaz. Actually, it was almost exactly one year ago that Diaz and Garcia were closing in on a fight with each other. Well, that was before the radically unreliable King Ry abruptly pulled out of their match due to injury. So not only is this a solid prizefight, it comes with bad blood already built in.
For his part, Stevenson is an overtly talented and highly visible former champion. Really this is all that needs to be said about why that is a potentially wonderful assignment for Diaz. Yet, in the sport of boxing, it’s always a trusty formula for disaster to overlook upcoming opponents. So, first let’s see if Diaz can take care of business against Segura before looking too far up the road!
By: Bakari Simpson
