Oscar Duarte Dispatches Of Joseph Diaz in Nine!
In a must win bout, former IBF junior lightweight champion Joseph “Jo Jo” Diaz (33-6-1, 15 KO’s) lost to Oscar “La Migrana” Duarte (27-2-1, 22 KO’s) by way of ninth round knockout. This was a solid win and dominant performance for Duarte who collected the biggest scalp of his career.
To his credit, Diaz began the match in fine fashion using his feet and keeping his Mexican opposition honest with his jab and body punching. In fact, during the first four rounds Jo Jo competed like he had turned back the hands of time. Unfortunately for him, Duarte finally began finding a home for his heavy hooks and uppercuts.
After looking abruptly stale in the fifth, a thudding left hook clipped and clearly buzzed the former champion. The seasoned fighter, who has never tasted the canvas, weathered the storm and fought to the bell. From that point on, however, Diaz fought in increasingly diminishing fashion while Duarte threw his wide rough shots from all angles.
Honestly speaking, Diaz was not being destroyed at the point of the stoppage, but the writing certainly was written on the wall. In this light, the stoppage was probably the right thing at that time. Now, it will be interesting to see what kind of fight Duarte and his team can parlay this win into.
