American professional boxer Joseph “JoJo” Pedroza Diaz Jr. (born November 23, 1992) held the WBC interim lightweight title from July 2021 until December 2021. In addition, he held the IBF super featherweight championship from February 2020 to February 2021. He played baseball when he was younger then switched to boxing to learn self-defense.
Personal Information
| Full name | Joseph Pedroza Diaz Jr |
| Other names | Jo Jo |
| Date of birth | November 23, 1992 |
| Place of birth | South El Monte, California, U.S |
| Nationality | American |
| Years active | 2012-present |
| Age | 30 |
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (168 cm) |
| Reach | 64 in (163 cm) |
| Net worth | $1.5-$5million |
| Mother’s name | Joseph Diaz Snr. |
| Father’s name | Valerie Diaz |
Early career
As a two-time national champion at bantamweight prior to the Olympic Trials, Diaz had an impressive resume that included victories against Antonio Nieves. He qualified for the quarterfinals of the 2011 World Championships, where he defeated Mexico’s scar Valdez, a former world championship bronze medalist, and Thailand’s Worapoj Petchkoom, the 2004 Olympic silver medalist, but fell to Lázaro lvarez, making him the first American boxer to qualify for the 2012 Olympics.
Additionally, Diaz competed in the 2010–11 World Series of Boxing and won the featherweight U.S. National Championship in 2011 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
During the 2012 Summer Olympics, Diaz won his first bout against Pavlo Ishchenko, but unfortunately, he lost in his second fight against Lázaro Álvarez.
Joseph Diaz Jr. Professional career
Diaz won his first fight as a professional boxer in 2012, knocking down Vincent Alfaro in the fourth round. He later defeated Giovanni Delgado in May 2015 and faced seasoned fighter Rene Alvarado in July 2015, both of which were shown on HBO Latino. The WBC-NABF featherweight championship, which Diaz successfully defended multiple times, was his reward for defeating Hugo Partida on December 18, 2015. On May 19, 2018, Diaz challenged Gary Russell Jr. for the WBC featherweight title, but he lost. The fight took place at the MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland, and ended in a unanimous decision loss for Diaz.
On January 30, 2020, Diaz won his first world title by defeating IBF super featherweight champion Tevin Farmer with scores of 115–113, 115–113, and 116–112. He acknowledged Farmer’s skills and thanked him for the opportunity.
Shavkat Rakhimov was the opponent for Diaz’s initial championship defense in February 2021. He was stripped of the title, nevertheless, since he failed to make weight and weighed 3.6 pounds too much—the maximum is 130 lbs. Although the bout went on, Diaz received a $100,000 fine for missing weight, which amounted to 20% of his winnings. Rakhimov and the California State Athletic Commission each received an equal portion of the money. With scores of 115-113 Diaz, 114-114, and 114-114, the match ended in a majority draw.
Following their draw, Diaz promised that moving up to lightweight would be his best weight. On July 9, 2021, he faced Javier Fortuna for the vacant WBC interim lightweight title. Despite losing a point for hitting behind the head in the fourth round, Diaz won the fight by unanimous decision with scores of 117-110, 116-111, and 115-112.
On October 8, 2021, an announcement was made that Diaz would defend his WBC interim lightweight title against Ryan García on November 27 in Los Angeles. However, on October 15, it was reported that García had suffered a hand injury and the fight would be postponed.
This caused Diaz to engage in a social media exchange with Devin Haney, the full WBC lightweight champion, and eventually resulted in Diaz challenging Haney for his full world title on December 4 instead of defending his interim title against García. Currently, Diaz is scheduled to have a twelve-round lightweight bout against William Zepeda on November 5, 2022.
Joseph Diaz Jr. Relationship status
Various media outlets have reported that Breezh, a prosperous journalist, is the partner of Joseph Diaz, and together they have a son named Zenith Joseph Diaz, who was born on November 17, 2020. However, details regarding the origin of their relationship and how they crossed paths have yet to be disclosed to the public.
Net worth
Joseph Diaz’s net worth as of January 2023 is somewhere estimated between $1.5-$5 million.
FAQs on Joseph Diaz Jr.
When did Joseph Diaz Jr. made his professional debut?
In 2012, Joseph Diaz commenced his professional boxing career by competing against Vincent Alfaro. He emerged victorious by obtaining a unanimous decision after four rounds of intense boxing.
What is Joseph Diaz Jr.‘s career summary?
The current standings for Joseph “Jo Jo” Diaz are 32 wins, 2 losses, and 1 draw. He has stopped 15 of his opponents in those 32 victories, giving him a current knockout percentage of 47%. His professional fights have lasted a total of 263 rounds.
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