D. Magdaleno Eyes May 17 Return, Praises Joel Diaz

By Ryan Burton

This past Saturday night BoxingScene.com caught up with super featherweight contender Diego Magdaleno.  The 27-year-old has won two fights in a row since suffering his only career loss which was against former champion Rocky Martinez.

Magdaleno and his younger brother Jessie began training with world class trainer Joel Diaz shortly after Diego's loss.  Diaz also trains world champions Tim Bradley, Omar Figueroa and many other fighters.

Diaz recently has had success in building up previously unknown fighters. Fernando Carcamo entered ESPN's Boxcino tournament with a modest 15-5 record but has won both of his fights which has vaulted him into the tournament's final round where he will face Petr Petrov on May 23rd.  On Saturday evening Juan Carlos Martinez entered the ring with a 19-14 record and scored a major upset over Alejandro Perez (19-4). If Perez had won the fight he would have then faced Nicholas Walters on May 31st ffor his WBA featherweight title.

"(Diaz) is a guy that if you put him in deep water he will come out alive.  Have him train anybody and he comes out.  He rises to the challenge.  Not just Martinez but look at Carcamo," Magdaleno stated.

Magdaleno said that he will face whoever his team tells him to fight but said that he feels like he is ready to challenge for a world title right now and that he doesn't need anymore tune up fights. 

"I am ready to go now.  My camp is completely different.  There is a lot of knowledge on my team and I am ready to go now.  I have learned a lot," Magdaleno told BoxingScene.com.

Magdaleno said that he doesn't have a fight officially locked in but that he will return on either the undercard of Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Mike Alvarado that takes place in Los Angeles or on the undercard of 2012 U.S. Olympian Jose Ramirez's next card that takes place in Fresno.  Both fights take place on May 17th.

"We are looking at May 17th.  We don't know which event yet but we will definitely be back in May," explained Magdaleno.

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