WBC lightweight champion David Diaz will battle in a 12-round rumble with Diaz’s title at stake. Pacquiao vs. Diaz will take place June 28 in Las Vegas and can be seen live on pay-per-view beginning at 9 p.m. ET.
Before the fight, Diaz talked to FOXSports.com about his preparation to defend his title.
FOXSports.com: How has training been going?
David Diaz: It’s been going great. Everything has been on point and we’re doing good conditioning. We’re almost ready to go.
FOXSports.com: How have you been preparing for Manny Pacquiao?
DD: Whoever is the best position fighter is going to win the fight. He likes to come forward, I like to come forward so whoever has the best conditioning is going to win this fight. I feel really good about my position and I just hope he comes prepared so we can get the crowd up for the fight.
FOXSports.com: Can you talk a little bit about what you expect from him in the ring?
DD: I expect the Manny Pacquiao I see on TV. He’s a guy who comes straight forward, is fast, and he’s a guy who’s relentless so we got to try to match him or beat him in the punch ratio and take it from there.
FOXSports.com: Manny is changing weight divisions for this fight. How do you think that’s going to affect him?
DD: I don’t think it’ll affect him. I think it’ll affect more of a fighter that goes down in a fight than comes up. If he comes up, he’s more comfortable with the weight so I really don’t see a difference.
FOXSports.com: As you’re preparing for this fight, do you prepare differently knowing your title is going to be on the line?
DD: More heart, more conditioning. You have to train harder now because he wants to take the title away and I have to try to keep it so I probably have to train twice as hard as he does.
FOXSports.com: Speaking of fighters, what was your reaction to Floyd Mayweather’s retirement?
DD: I think Floyd has accomplished everything he wanted to, I suppose. Can you blame him? I can’t blame him for retiring and keeping his sense and a ton of money. I think he did OK. He’s walking away from the sport as the best fighter in the world and more power to him.
FOXSports.com: There’s a large number of well-known Mexican fighters who have been beaten by Manny Pacquiao. How does that affect you going into this?
DD: It gives me pride going into this because the Mexican people that I meet here in Chicago, they tell me “You’re the last hope.” I was born here but my parents are from Mexico and every time I see people, they always say, “You can do it. You’re our last hope.” So it fills me with great pride that they’re relying on me to do something special for them. It feels really good.
FOXSports.com: So what do you want to tell those fans about what they should expect from you in this fight?
DD: The people who’ve seen me fight, they know what to expect. Those who haven’t, you’re going to see an all-out war. And hopefully, I come out winning to hold on to my belt.
