Russell Jr Withstands Diaz Jr to Retain WBC title, Eyes A Unification Bout or Will Move Up in Weight
By Dr. Paul Jones | Published: Monday, May 21, 2018 | Photo © Paul Jones
OXON HILL, MD — There’s an old saying: The cream (always) rises to the top.
When applied to boxing, this statement generally means that, all things being equal, a superior fighter will eventually find a way to get the better of his opponent.
Throughout his career, WBC World champion, “Mr.” Gary Russell Jr. (29–1, 17 KOs), has remained among the cream of the crop at featherweight, dating back as far as 2011 when he took home ESPN.com’s Prospect of the Year honors.
However, when Russell Jr. stepped into the ring against undefeated mandatory challenger, Joseph Diaz Jr. (26–1, 14 KOs) on Saturday night at the MGM National Harbor in Maryland, some fight fans and media members (including yours truly) questioned whether Diaz had enough talent, skill, and hutzpah, quite frankly, to be a serious threat to Russell.
In other words, despite Diaz Jr.’s unblemished record, there were doubts that the 25-year-old fighter from South El Monte, California could put up enough resistance to test whether the ‘cream rises to the top’ hypothesis still applies to Russell.
Fortunately, Diaz’s toughness and sensible game plan (one that he promised would combine speed, power, “sneaky body shots,” and a rehydration of up to 140 pounds) gave Russell all that he could handle and produced a memorable fight that could well receive honorable mention as Fight and Round (12) of the Year candidates.
From the opening bell, Russell moved forward and brought the fight to Diaz. To the untrained eye, it looked as if Russell was trying to channel Diaz’s inner alpha to give the California native a dose of his own medicine, including engaging Diaz in phone booth warfare rather than fighting him from a distance.
But, Russell’s approach was more calculated than that.
“Whenever [Diaz] wanted to get close, we’d smother him, tie him up, reset, and get back to the middle of the ring,” said Russell. “Now let’s get back past this jab and get back past my hand speed.”
It was this strategy that led to Russell’s early lead on two of three scorecards after four rounds, though some of these rounds were tough to score.
The middle rounds belonged to Russell, however, who began to adjust to Diaz’s pressure by countering and falling back on his jab.
“We knew he wanted to force the action,” said Russell, “but we were too far ahead on the scorecards…the jab, up and down, it paid dividends.”
Although Diaz began to surge in the championship rounds, it was simply too little too late and he knew it.
“I just started a little too late,” said Diaz. “I should have picked up in the sixth round, [but] I started in the eighth or ninth round. It was my fault.”
The final scorecards confirmed Diaz’s belief: 117–111 (twice) and 115–113 all for Russell who retained his WBC title by unanimous decision.
My unofficial scorecard was 115–113 for Russell.
When asked, What’s next? Russell replied, “Unification. If we can’t get a unification, we plan on moving up in weight.”
Let’s hope that the winner of Santa Cruz-Mares 2 — the WBA’s Super and Regular Champions, respectively — will be fielding Russell’s call to action when the dust settles on their June 9 matchup at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles.
Other News and Notes:
Reigning champions Gervonta “Tank” Davis (20–0, 19 KOs; above) and “Swift” Jarrett Hurd (22–0, 15 KOs), and former champ Austin “No Doubt” Trout (31–4, 17 KOs) were also in attendance for Russell Jr. vs. Diaz Jr. ■
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Dr. Paul Jones is a boxing writer, ringside photographer, and 🏆 award-winning educator. He has published over a dozen scholarly papers and technical reports, and his boxing articles and photography can be seen on EastsideBoxing.com, Boxingnews24.com, Wrapsontv.com, and BoxingInsider.com. Follow him on Twitter @boxingepicenter, YouTube, and Medium.com.
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