Yesterday afternoon in Las Vegas I made a pit stop at Barry?s Boxing Center for the open media workout for some of the fighters from this weekend?s card at the Texas Station Casino, which is headlined by an interesting bout between undefeated junior lightweight Diego Magdaleno and Alejandro Perez. But before I could take any pictures or interact with the pugilists at hand I was greeted by a familiar face; veteran trainer and cut man Miguel Diaz.
Diaz had just got back from Atlantic City after working Erislandy Lara?s corner on Saturday night in his controversial majority decision loss to former champion Paul Williams. The left-handed Lara landed repeatedly on Williams inside of the Boardwalk Hall but couldn?t do enough to sway the judges in a result that still has several boxing insiders befuddled.
Diaz didn?t hide his emotions when discussing the verdict with me.
?Possibly one of the most atrocious robberies,? The Argentinean claimed. ?No one person, expect Paul Williams’ people, and you have to defend your own product, that?s the only people that can say that Paul Williams won. The rest of the people, most of the people came and talked to me after the fight. The whole press agreed, and they came to me.?
Williams was looking to rebound from a devastating 2nd round knockout at the hands of Sergio Martinez last November but it looks like that fight may have taken something out of him, as reports say he just didn?t look the same against Lara this past weekend. For Diaz, Williams? mental state in taking a comeback fight against his dangerous charge actually served as a key reason why he felt they could pull off the win.
?Well, I think Paul Williams is not the same fighter that he used to be. He throws a lot of punches but nothing significant. The only damage that Lara got was the head butt, which was an unintentional head butt from both of the kids. Paul Williams came up with a cut on the left eye; my boy came out with a [knot] just like with Rahman. The only thing was that this was on the side of the head and easier to control.?
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A solid performance was needed from Lara, who saw his stock take a hit this past March with a majority draw against Chiago’s Carlos Molina inside of the nearby Cosmopolitan Hotel. He showed initiative against Williams that was lacking in the Molina fight and overall Diaz seemed pleased with his effort.
?Lara was capitalizing on the inefficiencies of Paul Williams, who couldn?t stop the left hand. He got hit over, and over, and over with a left hand. The only thing I can say derogative on Lara, when he was inside he was rushing every punch that Paul Williams threw. We were telling him in the corner to bend his knees and step out a bit and try to hit the body. If he would have done that, I?m pretty sure he would have stopped Paul,? stated Diaz.
Diaz was filling in for trainer Ronnie Shields in assisting Lara but will remain in his corner as a cut man in future showcases. Despite the loss, Diaz sees bigger things ahead for the 28-year old.
?Elevated 100%. Right now he has to get healed. He has a little crack in the eye and the doctors said that he shouldn?t drive or fly. With the necessary time to heal, he is in the mix to fight anybody at 154 pounds.?
Chris Robinson is based out of Las Vegas, Nevada. He can be reached at [email protected]
