Joseph Diaz: Horacio Garcia is Very Dangerous, But We're Ready

By Francisco Salazar

Fighting at the Fantasy Springs Casino Resort in Indio, Calif. has been okay for Joseph Diaz, Jr. It is about a two-hour drive from where he grew up in South El Monte, Calif.

Then again, fighting at the Belasco Theatre in Los Angeles is better as it is about a 20-minute drive (without traffic) from his childhood home.

But fighting at The Forum in Inglewood will be icing on the cake thus far in his career. Not to mention he gets to share the same ring with Bernard Hopkins.

Diaz will face Horacio Garcia in a 10 round featherweight bout at the famed venue in Inglewood, Calif. His fight will precede the 12 round main event bout between Bernard Hopkins and Joe Smith.

Both fights, along with Oleksandr Usyk's world title defense against Thabiso Mchunu, will air on HBO, beginning at 10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT.

Diaz (22-0, 13KOs) is coming off a ninth round knockout win over Andrew Cancio on September 17 in Arlington, Tex. Tonight will mark Diaz's fourth fight of 2016. Diaz is ranked in the top 10 in three of the major sanctioning bodies. He recently won Prospect of the Year (2016) by the WBC.

He faces Garcia (30-1-1, 22 KOs), who fought to a split decision draw against Erik Ruiz in his last bout on May 6.

Diaz is favored to come out victorious tonight, but is not overlooking Garcia, who resides in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico and has mostly fought as a junior featherweight.

"Garcia is very dangerous," said Diaz, who is promoted by Golden Boy and managed by Ralph Heredia. "He's big for his weight. I feel like he is going to have a lot more power at 126 (pounds) than he has in the past. This is his big shot to get an upset. I'm not taking him lightly at all. This was probably one of the hardest training camps I've had."

"Garcia is going to go out there and prove himself, but we're ready."

Diaz has not fought in the Los Angeles area this year as his March 26 bout against Jason Velez took place in Oakland and his second round knockout of Victor Proa on July 30 took place in Indio.

He will have family, friends, and a growing fan base watch from inside the arena. It is a dream come true of sorts for Diaz, as he has yearned to fight on a large platform, but in his hometown.

Diaz is eager to make the most of his opportunity tonight.

"This is a dream come true. This is a historic event with the legend Bernard Hopkins. It's a blessing to be the co-main event. Oscar and Golden Boy could have chosen someone else to be the co-main event for Bernard Hopkins' final fight, but they chose me and that's a big thing."

"This is my home turf, so I want to give the L.A. fans a great fight. I'm going to do anything and everything it takes to get the win.

Francisco A. Salazar has written for Boxingscene.com since September of 2012 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (Calif.) Star newspaper, RingTV, and Knockout Nation. He can be reached by email at santio89@yahoo.com or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing