It’s not the fight he craved, but it’s an opportunity that Tevin Farmer craves.
All that he asks is for his opponent, Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz to do the same—well, that, and be more appreciative of the chance to fight for the 130-pound title.
“I’m ready. Jo Jo’s ready. You know, I feel like when he got up here, he should’ve thanked me,” Philadelphia’s Farmer (30-4-1, 6KOs) noted during the pre-fight press conference ahead of their upcoming clash at Meridian at Island Gardens in Miami, Florida (Thursday, DAZN, 7:00pm ET). “I’m the one who gave him the opportunity to fight.
“I could’ve fought somebody else but I wanted to fight him because he’s a hell of a fighter.”
Farmer will attempt the 5th defense of the title he claimed in a 12-round win over Billy Dib on the road in Australia less than 18 months ago. The entirety of his title reign has produced dominating performances, even in a spirited yet one-sided shootout with previously unbeaten Jono Carroll last March.
His most recent win, a 12-round whitewash of France’s Guillaume Frenois last July saw Farmer go through the motions down the stretch, in part due to the lopsided nature of the contest.
Most observers have this fight—which is part of a loaded pre-Super Bowl boxing card featuring three title fights, topped by Demetrius Andrade (28-0, 17KOs) in a 12-round middleweight title defense versus Ireland’s Luke Keeler (17-2-1, 5KOs)—pegged as the most competitive of the evening.
Such accolades are the ultimate sign of respect for the challenge brought by Diaz. The 27-year old southpaw from Downey, California—who was part of the 2012 U.S. Olympic boxing team which competed in London—has won four straight since a hard-fought but decisive points loss to featherweight titlist Gary Russell Jr. in their May 2018 clash.
Whether through their months-long war of words, or Diaz’s natural fighting style, the consensus heading in has this fight as too close to call.
Farmer’s fine with that perception, even if he doesn’t hold out hope for such a forecast to come to fruition,
“I’m gonna beat Jo Jo’s ass, flat out,” Farmer bluntly stated. “I feel like I’m at another level. He gonna bring it, at least I hope he will. Honestly, I’m tired of sweeping people out. I’m tired of killing people every single round. I’m looking for a challenge.
“I hope we get fight of the night, but I don’t think so—I think it’s gonna be a clean sweep.”
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox