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Photo © German Villasenor
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I remember watching Juan ‘Baby Bull’ Diaz fighting in his sixth pro fight in December of 2000 and thinking that I was seeing something special. It wasn’t the skills, power, or speed that caught my eye, rather the passion that came from Diaz when he was in the ring. He went at his foe with everything he had and you could sense just how much the kid wanted it. Fast forward five years later and Diaz is the WBA Lightweight Champion of the world, with his passion for the sport leading the way.
At just 22 years of age, Diaz is living the life of a world champion when a lot of his peers are just finishing college. He has followed the straight and narrow path his entire life and reaped the benefits of it. The mandatory challenger to his title is the same man he beat to claim the belt, Lakva Sim, and Diaz is getting ready to do whatever it takes to make sure he once again comes out on top.
I was able to catch up with Diaz to get his thoughts on his upcoming fight with Sim, the rubber match between Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo, and his overall motivation for the sport of boxing. Here’s what the Houston, Texas native had to say…
Getting ready for Sim…
‘Right now I am getting ready for my mandatory against Lakva Sim. It was supposed to take place on December 15th but it got postponed and we’re looking to take the fight to a purse bid. I think that should all take place next Friday (January 13th).
Keeping an eye on Corrales-Castillo III…
‘My main goal for 2006 is to try to fight for another title in my division. The main fight I really want is the winner between Diego Corrales and (Jose Luis) Castillo. I think Castillo is going to come through on the third fight. He’s just the bigger, stronger guy.
Getting the experience…
‘I think I have an advantage because I had a lot of things happen to me early in my career. I’ve been knocked down, I’ve been cut, hit low, and it was all in one fight. In several other fights I had to go through a lot too. You just get the experience to know how to handle the situation if it ever comes up.
On top of the world…
‘When I won the WBA title I felt like I was on top of the world. I was 20 years old and being a champion at that age was just a dream come true. Not a lot of people can experience the feeling of accomplishing that at such a young age.
Always there…
‘I was born and raised in Houston, Texas. I’d have to say I had a pretty good childhood because of my parents. They both worked hard. My Mom and my Dad had two jobs and I didn’t always get to see them but it helped me a lot because they were able to put me through school. They helped keep me out of trouble and because of them and their advice I was able to stay on the straight and narrow. They were always there for me.
Where it all started…
‘My father is a big boxing fanatic. The day that he found out my mom was pregnant he told her that if she gave birth to a boy then he would be a boxer. At the age of eight I found Savannah Boxing Club and that’s where it all started for me.
The crowd…
‘The main thing that draws me to the sport is the crowd. When I fight I like to hear everybody screaming my name and I just love to give people good fights.
Biggest strength…
‘I would have to say my biggest strength is my conditioning. I don’t think there are a lot of guys out there who can throw as many punches as I can and still be fresh at the end of twelve rounds.
Favorite locations…
‘As a professional I loved fighting in Las Vegas. I fought at the Mandalay Bay and it was a great experience when I fought there. I fought there when it was my fifth or sixth fight and it was the night before Vargas and Trinidad fought. It was just a great experience for me. I would have to say I was about 17 or 18 years old and I had never been out to a place like Vegas with the nice hotels and everything. Just seeing the MGM and the Mandalay Bay and meeting the people out there gave me the motivation to keep working hard.
As an amateur I enjoyed fighting in Puerto Rico. I went there for an international tournament and it was real nice. It was beautiful. I went to San Juan for a while and also went out to the beach. I was with the Mexican and U.S. Olympic teams and it was just a lot of fun.
The mental game…
I would have to say that boxing is about fifty percent mental. If you go in there and your mind isn’t right then you aren’t going to be thinking about the punches that are being thrown at you and you won’t realize what combinations you have to throw back. No matter how good of shape you are in physically, if your mind isn’t right you have a much greater chance of getting knocked out.
Motivation…
‘My motivation right now is my parents. I accomplished my goal of becoming a world champion but I want to get the point where I can retire both of my parents before they have to retire themselves. They’ve done so much for me and helped me so much that I feel obligated to give something back.
Fellow fighters…
‘There are two fighters from Main Events that I was close with. I was with Francisco Bojado down in Mexico as part of the Mexican Olympic team and we used to hang out down there. When we turned pro we used to talk as well. Lately I don’t know what he has been up to. His career went up and down a bit and I really don’t know where he is at nowadays.
'Another guy I know is Rocky Juarez, who is also from Houston. We don’t really hang out but we talk whenever we see each other and we definitely have great respect for each other.
The fans…
‘My fans are very important because the fans are what make the fighters what they are. That’s why I like to put on good fights and when people see me fight they will enjoy it. The fans are the ones who are going to buy the tickets and they are the ones who are going to make us superstars in the future.’
-Special thanks to Donald Tremblay and Willie Savannah for making this one on one possible.
*This Article is Sponsored by http://www.healthycoco.com/ |
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© Copyright / All Rights reserved: Doghouse Boxing 1998-2006
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INTERVIEW By Chris Robinson (January 11, 2006)
