Via Dan Ambrose: Joseph ‘Jojo’ Diaz Jr says he’s confident he’ll topple WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney this Saturday night with the game plan his training camp has up his sleeve. The two will join DAZN at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas.
Diaz Jr. (32-1-1, 15 KOs) revealed that he would put constant pressure on 23-year-old Haney, roughing him up and forcing him to fight in the pocket all night.
Haney (26-0, 15 KOs) likes to stay outside and control the tempo of the game with her stab.
With George Kambosos Jr. beat Teofimo Lopez to become the undisputed lightweight champion last Saturday night, the winner between Haney vs. Jojo Diaz Jr. will probably confront him next.
Haney and his promoter Eddie Hearn have been transparent about their desire to fight Kambosos Jr. next and maybe fight him in Australia. Jojo Diaz Jr. His options remain open, saying he will face Kambosos or 135-lb ‘regular’ WBA champion Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis next.
Diaz is ready to take down Haney
“Absolutely possible because a lot of people have counted George Kambosos. George Kambosos is a young competitive boxer,” said Joseph Diaz Jr. talk to Against TV Hub when asked if he’s motivated after watching Kambosos beat Teofimo Lopez last Saturday night.
“I knew Devin Haney would keep me around, but being my dog, rough with him, tired him out, made him fight in the pocket and got him out of there. It will be a late game or a make up match in the round of 16.
“I am planning to overwhelm him with the endurance, strength, power, experience and knowledge that I have gained in the ring. Like I said, this is my moment, and I will win on Saturday night.
“I want to have the biggest match possible of my career,” said Jojo Diaz when asked what he wants next if he beats Haney on Saturday night. “Right now, I feel like I’m at my best and I want to leave a legacy.
“If George Kambosos wants to fight after this war, make it happen. If not, I want the next Gervonta Davis. I like the guys that people are talking about because I want to go up against the top and I want them to know that I don’t mind fighting them.
“And I want to fight these guys not like the people who are calling people but then when the situation gets tough or when the actual contract is sent to them; they won’t sign.
“I want to fight George Kambosos or Gervonta Davis next,” said Jojo Diaz.
Pressure is the way to beat Haney because if you keep acting on the outside, he’s going to go all night and get a decision on the comfort point, and that’s the way Haney works.
Devin can’t punch, and he never will, so he’ll be racing all night looking to either win the decisive 12th round against Jojo Diaz or get a penalty cut.
Jojo won’t be surprised if he beats Devin
“The result of me beating Devin Haney wouldn’t come as a shock to me,” said Jojo Diaz Jr. speak. “It would be like, ‘Okay, I’m done. Now I will focus on someone else. ‘
“I am still young in the game. And I’m 29 and at my peak, and my body is at its best. I was just getting ready to go, and I was hungry. My main focus right now is on Devin Haney and getting him out of there.
“Then focus on the other person. I’m looking forward to a clash with him [Kambosos] then down the line. It will be a great clash, and there will be fireworks for the fighting fans. I just focused on Devin Haney.
“I just have to go out there and do my job and victory will come on Saturday night.
“And I know Teofimo, and his father thinks George Kambosos is nobody, and I’m watching some of his tapes, and I’m watching how hungry he is.
“I thought, ‘This guy is going to be a big threat, and he’s not going to knock him out in the first round like everyone thinks.’
“It wasn’t a walk in the park, but Teofimo Lopez and his dad, I think he’s going to knock him out because he’s so big.
“Even outside of camp, he was quite big, quite strong and solid, but the reduced weight made him exhausted, and he couldn’t function like it normally does in the camps. different weights when you’re hydrated.
“So he doesn’t pop anymore; Diaz Jr.
Diaz wouldn’t be surprised if he beat Haney as we saw how vulnerable Devin looked in his last game against Jorge Linares last May.
If Haney loses against an old player like Linares, 36, he will do the same to Jojo Diaz.
Haney is VERY lucky that Linares didn’t have the training to know that he was allowed to keep punching when he was being squeezed relentlessly.
Devin is in survival mode after being repeatedly damaged by Linares from the ninth round onwards, and watching all he’s doing is pretty bad.
Teofimo is exhausted after losing weight
“He is [Teofimo] still a sharp warrior, but tthe weight reduction really exhausted him, and George Kambosos did exactly what he needed to do,” Jojo said of why Teofimo lost to Kambosos.
“He knew Teofimo Lopez was going to lose water in that game, and he knew he had to work harder, stay away and not get caught by those hits.
“And he was arrested, but as soon as he was arrested, he also retaliated immediately to keep Teofimo Lopez away from him. He had a great game plan and had a great night of boxing, and deserved everything that was given to him.
“Teofimo Lopez is the type of fighter that will progress from this. I just think he needs to make a few adjustments in his camp and possibly gain weight, and I think he’s still going to be a boxer’s hell.
“I don’t think he won the fight. George Kambosos won the war. George Kambosos got his best; Jojo Diaz said.
It may have been more than the weight reduction that made Teofimo look weak and tired in the second half of the competition. He didn’t throw a lot of his right hand, which could confirm that he was fighting with an injured right elbow.
Lopez Sr., Teofimo’s father, told himself that he should have dropped his belt and moved up to 140 a long time ago because he’s been at 135 for so long. Looking back, Teofimo should have seen the writing on the wall when he let off steam in the second half against Vasily Lomachenko in 2020.
