Gary Russell Jr. (USA) vs Joseph Diaz (USA) - Boxing Highlights HD

Tonight, he is making his first attempt at a world title. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the WBC number one featherweight contender. Introducing the undefeated Joseph Joe Jonas Jr. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the reigning and the defending WBC featherweight champion of the world. Introducing Mr. Gary Russell Jr. Gary Russell Jr. entered the bout as the reigning WBC featherweight champion and one of the fastest hands in boxing. And that one hurt Eskandar, that last right hook to the temple area. Known for his blazing combinations, sharp southpaw timing, and slick defensive skills, Russell had successfully defended his title and was looking to solidify his standing among the division's elite. Although often criticized for fighting only once a year, Russell remained supremely confident in his abilities and eager to quiet any doubts. Fighting in front of a hometown crowd, he saw Diaz as another challenger looking to take what he believed was rightfully his. Champion in the red and silver. Make that black and gold. Yeah, that is a little bit surprising. And you see him using the jab. All-time great featherweight southpaw champion. Double jab by Russell. Starts to evolve here. Interesting beginning. And he whips the jab. Hand speed on display early. Putting together. Really pissed in, like, speed jab from that southpaw stance. Diaz wants to go to the body. They watched the fight in which Vasily Lomachenko beat... That right hook in on the counter. He didn't get it in there, but that's the risk of guys trying to go to the body. Round. One-two combination put together by Russell. Put him out of position. He's trying to block it with his hands up. I think maybe he should start probably parrying it instead of just keeping his gloves up, though, because Russell's... Oh, how effective it's been in this early start. It is now the 20th of last year that Russell... He looks very shocked tonight. Is that right hook by Russell? Russell's speed beginning to be doubled. Jojo Diaz here in round two. Vasily Lomachenko last week became the fastest fighter in the nation. If you're the opponent, you have to jump on him. He's found some success with his left and with the body work here in the second stanza. Diaz now putting together his punches. It's hard on the inside, but this is the geography you want. And Russell rips a shot to the butt. A second three-minute frame. Don't push! Don't push! Left uppercut on the inside scores for Russell. Right up body shot to the buttocks. Shoeshine to the body and a beautiful right hook. Yeah. Tell you what, though, Russell not giving ground. Another shot to the body with the right hand by Diaz. Covering the right hook of Russell very well. A double left hand scores for Diaz. That one punched himself out and allowed Diaz to get back into the round. A scintillating second round is in the books. Combination, not everything landing, but keeping Jojo Diaz on his back foot and not allowing him to throw punches. But it was Diaz who cut the distance. Now, interestingly, he used the jab. And then he threw some thunderous body punches. Title defense of his 126-pound belt against the undefeated mandatory challenger. Left uppercut on the inside lands for Russell Cameron. He's throwing some nice combinations here in round. This one is thrown more. Diaz landing at a very good clip. I think Russell here picking his spots. I think this time he's being more choosy and picking his spots well here. Looping left hands by Logan. This fight has been more of a weapon than we're accustomed to seeing. Again, riding a three-fight winning streak all via form of the knockouts. In fact, Russell winning the title in his two title defenses have all been inside the distance. Last time he went the distance was Badou Jack and Donna Stevenson, known for their body work. They're coming up, and Russell may have been staggered. But then in February of this year, he stopped former featherweight champion Victor Terraza. So... Well, people have criticized him. I take it the one loss he had, right? Yes, that is, beyond that, not so much. And now Russell using angles. A little lateral movement to judge Diaz. That's important. You probably put that out the window. And you just tried taking that approach earlier this round. Look at the volume of punching. Russell so much. Oh, beautiful body shot delivered by Diaz. And that is Russell Macheco. He is definitely living up to that Mexican fighter reputation. Russell trying to keep Diaz at bay with that. He's very strong, so we'll see. I like how he just cut off Russell there. That's going to be something he's probably going to try. Using technology to teach him the nuances into Diaz. Russell! That was a great catch and shoot by Russell in terms of combination. Russell targeting! You don't know how much they're being affected by these shots. Yeah, you're absolutely correct. He's trying to sit you up, but he's trying to sit you up to throw from the outside. You've got to get closer. The last part of this round may have given Russell the round. He really finished strongly. There's the patented right hook of Russell. Junior fighting in front of friends and family. Jojo Diaz going cross-court. Russell out-landed Diaz. He seems to be a little busier, I think, when he's doing it. Diaz monitoring Diaz. I hope Chevalier doesn't take away the body shot. That's a good combination by Diaz. And he told us he thought Russell was underestimating that. Speed and utilize different techniques. Very adaptable. Come on, Bobby Jack, one of the best body punchers in boxing. We'll see him later. Diaz is doing a great job of that in this show. Sometimes the Russell jab is winning him the round. It's not because of the damage. He said that Russell would be shocked with not only Diaz punching power, but also... Diaz is doing a good job walking him down. A nice counter right here. He's got Russell stopped. That's a good body shot. And again, the changes at the end of the leg front that made him take another combination of body shots. It seems more often than not, and then Diaz comes back. Russell automatically, whether it's getting blocked or not, for Russell as this fight wears on. We'll see. Left hand on the break by Diaz again. He targets Russell. He's reusing energy conservatively. Diaz with the edge in terms of... Russell. Diaz walking down the champion, but Russell able to keep him at bay. And a double right. A change of angles. When Russell gives his change of angles, he's not stationed. There's camera. That's a hard combination by Russell. We're headed into the second half of this 12-round, 126-pound championship event. So, at the midpoint of a terrific battle for the one-tastic fights and rivalries And let's bring in our unofficial scorer, Steve Farber. There have been dramatic shifts in almost every round. How do you equate those two things? We do. Furious action. Back foot with that stout jab comes forward with a... He's gonna have to start jabbing with Russell. He's trying to walk him down without jabbing. And Russell's starting to not let him get the free entrance every time. And the method he's utilizing to get off the ropes is just leaning into Diaz. Russell has thrown 69 punches in this round to 12 by Diaz. He's had hand issues in the past. By the way, his dad wishes that Gary Russell... 30 seconds left in the seventh. He just hasn't been able to get off as much as he wants. Diaz Jr., the mandatory challenger in the red and silver. Can he maintain that through this... Beautiful right hook. Because Russell was distracting Diaz with his jabs. In his other fights, he's been a tremendous finisher. 12 rounders in the eighth round, and Russell attacking the body with the left hand. Russell's only been 12 one-time, but that fight had already been going against him and considered him perhaps the best in boxing. Nice left hand by Diaz. He's coming forward. He's showing he still wants him. He's gotta be a bit more clear when he stopped being a still target for Diaz. There's the three. Stymied by the jab of Russell. Down at his belt line. See, Diaz had Russell in his position around off the ropes. Sometimes that's what the jab will do, and it'll prevent... The jab is not just for landing. Sometimes you'll miss a jab, but the way the guy moves defensively, trying to slip it... Harbor just outside of Washington, D.C., coming up next. Crown against Badou Jack. Our Jim Graves is in. Our unofficial scorer, Steve Farhood. Now that gives Russell a chance to get more options to move or punch. Gives him more options. Gary Russell Jr. Will he be able to get back into this fight? Well, the one most important is the distance. He will not win it fighting at this distance. He's got it. This has been a very consistent performance by Gary Russell. Seeing any effects whatsoever of Jojo Diaz's concerted body attacks. I thought Russell tested Diaz and came out with some heavy, heavy thunder. Now, since then, Russell picks this and he's varied it enough like a veteran technical fighter. Final 15 seconds of the fight. Fighting off the ropes with a combination. See, sometimes Diaz does a good job. A normal one. And using the jab, as we pointed out, to do other things, to create opportunities. Inside the distance. He has not recorded a knockout past the 7th round. Only 34 tonight. He desperately needs to. He just has to punch in between some of this. See, when Russell's touching, he's looking for a counter shot. There's a counter left by Diaz on Dupont. I haven't seen one feint or fight. Even when he's thrusting. And then the follow-up shot. Left hand by Diaz. He's dictating the pace of this fight. More than 500 jabs, I recall. A sensei. Well, Jojo Diaz making it Junior. Diaz was coming in and there was a lot of awkward activity. Yeah, we're lucky there wasn't a cut there. Diaz could have been cut. He kind of pulls. This is round 11. And Gary Russell Jr. initiates speed. The accuracy of Russell proving to be too much for Diaz out. Diaz continues to attack the body as they lean into him. Misses with the left cross. Lever shot and a left hook upstairs by the self-taught Diaz. Making this exciting. But again, just like earlier, showing off their local favorite, Gary Russell Jr. But Diaz has his entourage here from California, including his family. Neither guy backing off, though. A little bit of everything in this. Two self-boss battling for a piece. Plenty of fistic fireworks with more to come. June 9th, that battle in Los Angeles as Gary Russell Jr. and Jojo Diaz about to go to the 12th and final round. He tries to grab you, son. You pull back and go back underneath him. You understand? This is your last round, Joe. You worked hard for this last round. You can pretty much stop him right here, Joe. Put your jab there. Sweep behind the ear. Go back where you were. Following the advice in both rounds, the 12th and final round. The champion brought him to the top of the 126-pound division. And Jojo's best performance of his career because he's done great against him. You need some really good fighters to bring out the best out of you, and Jojo Diaz has done it. Gary Russell Jr. has ought again. He goes down, warning Diaz not to push Russell down. So he's in a four-printer offense. Even though he's still punching, his job is to stay upright. Slam dunk out to complete the basketball metaphor, as Diaz digging away at the body. Good exchange along the ribs. He's still a fighter undefeated. He never feels like he's beaten to the point. The lightweight champion, Gary Russell Jr., an undefeated man. Is Russell tired? He's got youthful ferocity, and Diaz, even though he's... Gary Russell Jr., lounging on the ribs. Russell, though, firing back with a blistering cut. He's got a big screen. You see how much time is left in the round. But time is running out. Diaz continues to entertain the crowd here. FGM National Harbor on his feet. Division. We saw that a lot in this fight as we look back. Throwing, you know, three, four, five punches at a time. And you see the really amazing combination punching of Russell. All three in favor of the winner, and still champion, Mr. Gary Russell Jr.