Joseph Diaz ready for William Zepeda on Oct.29th

By Boxing News - 10/06/2022 - Comments

By Dan Ambrose: Joseph ‘JoJo’ Diaz Jr returns to the ring this month on October 29th to battle unbeaten lightweight knockout artist William Zepeda in the main event on DAZN in a scheduled 12 round bout at the Pechanga Arena San Diego.

(Photo credit: Golden Boy Promotions)

Zepeda is a risky fight for the smallish JoJo Diaz, as the limited power that he had at 126 and 130 has failed to carry up to the 135-lb division. Although Diaz rocked Devin Haney in their fight last December, he did that on his volume punching.

Diaz, 29, is fighting for the first time since his 12-round unanimous decision defeat against Devin Haney last December. JoJo Diaz is taking on a dangerous opponent in 26-year-old Zepeda (26-0, 23 KOs) because he’s not a natural 135-pounder.

Diaz started out his career at 126, and moved up to 130 after a one-sided loss to Gary Russell Jr in 2018. He fought at super featherweight after losing his IBF title on the scales in his fight against Shavkat Rakhimov in February 2021.

That fight was scored as a 12 round draw, but many boxing fans felt that Diaz had done enough to rate the victory. Nevertheless, Diaz moved up to 135 in July of last year, defeating Javier Fortuna by a 12 round decision after Ryan Garcia pulled out of the contest due to mental health issues.

In the co-feature bout, welterweight contender Alexis Rocha (20-1, 13 KOs) faces Jesus Perez (24-3, 18 KOs) in a 10 round bout. Rocha has recent victories over Luis Alberto Veron and Blair Cobb.

Undercard fights:

  • Alexis Rocha vs. Jesus Perez
  • Arely Mucino vs. Leonela Yudica
  • Jorge Chavez vs. Adrian Leyya

“It gives me goosebumps while here in San Diego, knowing that I am going to fight here soon in a couple of weeks,” said Jojo Diaz about his bout with Zepeda. “We are three weeks out, and I’m ready and excited.”

“It’s going to be a great night of fights. I know my opponent (William Zepeda) is going to bring his all. But I am ready to execute and do what I do best.”

“I am 150% confident that my hand will be raised after that bell rings. My training and preparation will make sure of that,” said Diaz.

“If Diaz loses this fight, he’ll need to think hard about moving back down to 130 because he’s too small for the 135-lb division.

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