By Cliff Rold

All of the talk going in focused on undefeated Lightweight Juan Diaz.  Nate Campbell changed the conversation in thrilling fashion on Saturday night at the Plaza de Toros in Cancun, Mexico.

Over twelve grueling rounds, the 35-year old Campbell (32-5-1, 25 KO) of Tampa, Florida wore down the 24-year old Diaz (33-1, 17 KO) of Houston, Texas to capture the WBA, WBO and IBF 135 lb. belts.  Campbell also stamped himself the number one threat to the winner of the March 22nd showdown for the World Lightweight championship between champion Joel Casamayor (35-3-1, 21 KO) and contender Michael Katsidis (23-0, 20 KO). 

Campbell lost a competitive decision to Casamayor in 2003 and based on recent showings would have to be heavily favored in any rematch.

The bout began even before the opening bell with Campbell taunting Diaz at mid-ring while the referee levied his instructions.  He carried that intensity into the fights first moments, charging forward at the opening bell and launching an assault on Diaz’s body.  Diaz fired back and the war was on.  Both men traded phone-booth style throughout what appeared an even first round.

In the second, Campbell maintained his effort to match the sort of frenetic pace that Diaz has become famous for.  He landed hard right hands while Diaz fired back with short hooks and uppercuts.  At one point, Diaz would drive Campbell into the ropes, firing in combination to seal the round.  That effort led Campbell to change tactics a bit in the third, backing off just slightly and looking for spots to counter.  As the round wore on, they returned to heavy trading; two long lefts by Diaz...two rights by Cambell...then a Campbell left...two clean hooks from Diaz...Campbell firing back as Diaz slipped.

It was breathtaking stuff.

By the halfway point of the fight, it appeared Diaz might be ready to take the older man’s legs but, towards the end of the sixth, Campbell opened a cut over Diaz’s left eye that, while not wide did cover the length of Diaz’s eyelid.  Still, Diaz’s fusillade of blows seemed to be edging many of the rounds. 

That changed dramatically in the bouts next frame. 

In the seventh, Campbell’s commitment to go to Diaz’s body paid off.  Diaz began to hold between flurries as Campbell’s right hand thudded off of the side of his head to send the blood form his eye flying into the crowd.  Campbell punished Diaz down the stretch, each round seemingly worse than the last as Diaz stopped fighting to win and searched for a chance to survive.

In the moments before the eleventh round, Diaz’s corner argued with the referee and bought Diaz a solid ten extra seconds rest time.  Those ten seconds allowed him his best effort since the fifth round as Diaz was able to land some flashy hooks while Campbell took the opportunity to rest, still throwing the right hand hard when he needed to but making sure his tank was full for the final round.

Clearly leading, Campbell proved to have plenty left.  Diaz, full of youthful courage and moxy, moved his hands but there was no snap in them and Campbell easily shrugged off the incoming fire, slipping and raking Diaz at will with the right hand.  At the bell, he raised his hands.  It was his third opportunity to capture a major title and Campbell wore the confidence of a man who knew he had trumped past failures.

Two of the three judges agreed.  Diaz’s early lead held on one card at 114-113 but was overruled by two other scores of 115-112 and 116-111 in favor of Campbell.  BoxingScene scored the bout 116-113 for Campbell. 

Diaz, off his first loss, could have an unpredictable future.  His relationship with promoter Don King has been publicly stated as over following the increased acrimony between King and Diaz’s manager Willie Savannah.  The price tag he can command as a promotional free agent will surely take a hit.  In contrast, the sky’s the limit for Campbell, a fighter whose career is reborn with this defining victory.

In the televised main event, Heavyweight Samuel Peter (30-1, 23 KO) of Nigeria stopped Oleg Maskaev (34-6, 26 KO) of Kazakhstan to consolidate his WBC interim belt and Maskaev’s regular WBC belt.  It was a better outing than the Heavyweight title bout between Wladimir Klitschko and Sultan Ibragimov two weeks ago if only because both Peter and Maskaev were at least willing to throw some punches in anger.

The bout developed at a measured pace, each man trying to establish their jab.  It wasn’t until the third that a fight broke out, with Peter landing a right hand that rocked Maskaev into the ropes.  Peter followed, looking to finish his evening task but Maskaev covered effectively and returned fire with a left hook that rocked Peter.  Maskaev followed with a thudding left-right combination that may even have stolen the round in his favor.

The bout held form through the fourth and fifth, with long periods of positioning followed by bursts of power punching.  The last burst came in the sixth.  Peter connected with a sharp right hand that sent Maskaev towards the ropes and, this time, Peter made sure to measure his shots as he pursued his injured foe.  Right hands cascaded around Maskaev’s attempts at defense until no defense was left.  His legs clearly gone, the referee saved a barely standing Maskaev from further punishment at 2:56 of the round.

Peter, 27, seems all but certain to be headed towards a member of the fighting Klitschko clan.  Older Vitali holds a WBC mandate of some inexplicable sort while younger Wladimir holds the WBO and IBF belts.  Which brother he faces will be a matter of much speculation in the coming days.  Maskaev, conversely, may need to consider retirement having suffered the sixth knockout loss of his career at 39 years of age.

In untelevised Heavyweight action, former WBA titlist John Ruiz (43-7-1, 29 KO) won a decision over Jameel McCline (39-9-3, 23 KO) in a bout reportedly marred by excessive clinching and grappling throughout.  Further reports from Mexico indicate a tedious affair that had the crowd booing and jeering throughout.  It was Ruiz’s second bout back after a decision loss in 2006 to current WBA titlist Ruslan Chagaev and it sounds like he’s back in prime form. 

The televised card was carried live on HBO.

Cliff Rold is a member of the Ring Magazine Ratings Advisory Panel and the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com