Farmer v Diaz: A Showdown in South Beach!
Well the time is finally here for IBF junior lightweight champion Tevin Farmer (30-4-1, 6KOs) and top contender former featherweight title challenger Joesph “JoJo” Diaz (30-1, 15KOs) to settle their long standing “beef”.
Diaz has been on the hunt for Farmer since his arrival in the 130lb division. He’s verbally disrespected Farmer while dismissing his quality of competition in the process. The Philly native, who’s full of confidence, hasn’t taken those insults lightly.
The good thing for both of these men is that they get a chance to settle their issues January 30 in Miami, Florida.
OPPOSING STYLES!
Farmer is a pure boxer. Possessing very little punching power, he uses his superb footwork and upper body movement to evade incoming punches from his opponent. He’s also blessed with good handspeed.
Diaz, on the other, is a come-forward pressure fighter with a tremendous body attack. His ability to cut the ring off will be key in this fight. He had minor success against Gary Russell Jr, a guy very similar to Farmer.
KEYS TO VICTORY
For Farmer to be successful, he’s going to have to keep Diaz off balance and at a distance. Doing so will frustrate Diaz, who will look to bring the fight to Farmer early. The champion must keep the distance to retain his titles.
For Diaz to be successful, he will need to cut the ring off and apply intelligent pressure and work the body early and often. He can’t let Farmer get into a rhythm. This fight must be fought at close range for him to get the W.
PREDICTION TIME!
I think Farmer’s time as champion will, unfortunately for him, come to an end. While I see this fight being ultra competitive, I believe that he’s not on the level of Russell, a guy who thoroughly out-boxed Diaz in 2018. He also doesn’t punch hard enough to keep Diaz off him. The pressure of Diaz and the body attack will pay dividends in the championship rounds.
I see Diaz scoring a late round stoppage to become the new IBF junior lightweight champion.
By: Jerrell Fletcher
