By Rick Reeno
Unless we get some unforeseen circumstance, later tonight the lightweight division should be one title away from being completely unified. The Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Ill., will host a lightweight unification showdown between WBA/WBO champion Juan Diaz (32-0, 16 KOs) of Houston, Texas and IBF champion Julio Diaz (34-3, 25 KOs) of Coachella, California.
The winner will be the holder of more recognized titles than any other fighter in the sport. How’s about that for status. But, that status will be short-lived, as unbeaten super middleweights champions Joe Calzaghe (WBO) and Mikkel Kessler (WBC/WBA) will collide in a unification bout on Nov. 3 in Wales.
Julio Diaz, 27, was once considered a hot prospect, until he lost a controversial split-decision to Angel Manfredy in 2001. The fight was a high-stakes eliminator to set up a title fight for the blossoming fighter, Diaz. Instead, Manfredy got the upset, thanks to Diaz losing two-points for low blows, and secured a shot at Paul Spadafora. Things did not get any better for Diaz, two fights later he was knocked out by the unheralded Juan Valenuela in a single round.
He would then pile up a six fight win streak on the road to winning the IBF lightweight title, which he was stripped of before making a single defense, because he accepted a fight with then WBC champion Jose Luis Castillo. Castillo would pummel Diaz badly before stopping him in the tenth. He would then win his next three before stopping Jesus Chavez to reclaim the IBF title in February.
Juan Diaz, 23, was a hot prospect who was largely overlooked until his contract ran out with Main Events and he became a free agent in 2006. An intense bidding war began with numerous promoters throwing big numbers in his direction. After it appeared that Diaz would sign with Golden Boy Promotions, he found a change of heart and signed with Don King.
In April, Diaz landed the biggest of his career by stopping Acelino Freitas in eight rounds to unify the WBA/WBO lightweight titles. Freitas was the favorite due to experience and power. Diaz not only outhustled Freitas, he also rocked him on more than one occasion in the fight, and eventually sent Freitas back into retirement by making him quit.
No longer overlooked, Diaz is a wanted man with several marquee fighters mentioning his name as a possible opponent in the near future.
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