I recall his coming out party. The date was July 17, 2004 as Juan Diaz steam rolled through the tough as nails WBA lightweight champ Lavka Sim in his hometown of Houston. Admittedly, I was more intrigued by his hometown stable mate Rocky Juarez who would do battle with Zahir Raheem on the same card, there was no doubt that the ?Baby Bull? stole the show. I kept waiting for him to tire, or at least let off the gas and conserve some energy. He never did and went on to become the youngest champion in boxing at the time, introducing himself as major force in the talented lightweight division.
In the often tumultuous environment of boxing, the ?Baby Bull? is breath of fresh air. He is a 24-year-old who presses every opponent. He is not interested in relishing on past accomplishments, in or out of the ring as he continues to show improvement in every outing. As a pre-law student at the University of Houston, Juan also hopes to become a success after boxing. To describe him out of the ring one might use the words respectful or mild mannered. Inside the ring he is a buzz saw.
Tonight he risks his WBA and WBO crowns against highly regarded IBF champ Julio Diaz (34-3, 25KOs) in a lightweight unification bout at the Sears Center in Chicago. Julio is an experienced boxer puncher who is coming off a TKO win over Jesus Chavez. He presents a unique challenge for the Houston native. With knockout power in both hands and is also known as an intelligent boxer. Juan will also be without longtime trainer Ronnie Shields in his corner as he has opted to work the corner of Evander Holyfield in one last attempt to capture a heavyweight crown. Taking chief duties will be trainer Derwin Richards who has been with Juan since his days as a standout amateur.
Juan (32-0, 16) is fully aware of this bout?s significance, ? I think this will turn out to be the fight of the year, they will have to take me out of the ring on a stretcher for me to loose this fight.? You can bet he has prepared for the fight of his young career.
Last April the ?Baby Bull? faced off against Acelino Freitas in what was to be is toughest test to date. Early on this appeared to be the case, Juan took some big shots from the WBO champ. Then midway through the fight he begin to make things uncomfortable for the Brazilian, backing him up and catching him with nearly every power punch he threw, prompting Popo to quit on his stool after the eighth. Even though the Brazilian has been known to quit, Juan?s performance was very impressive.
He has silenced many doubters with that last accomplished showing. There will be several who doubt him again. This is not what has motivated him though. Juan is driven by a fire within that other more talented fighters often lack. It is impossible to fight in the manner in which Juan does without giving everything in the gym and in the ring.
He now sits on the brink of boxing superstardom. He has all the ingredients. He is a role model which in itself is rarity in our sport. His style is relentless, he is reportedly in bed by ten o?clock, and he loves to train. Physically he does not resemble a world champion. He sports a little baby fat and should be able to make this weight class for a long time. Most champions who reach the pinnacle this early do so because of their immense talent. Juan is talented but his greatest attribute is his work ethic and unbelievable conditioning.
An impressive victory over 27-year-old Julio Diaz will go along way to push him into the higher echelon of champions and should vault him into even bigger fights with the likes of Manny Pacquiao or Joel Cassamayor who also has a claim to the lightweight throne. Don?t expect him to overlook what is in front of him now though. Juan is mature well past his age. He has exemplified this in and out of the ring. Saturday night he has the opportunity to do so one more time.
