This card is stacked with fighters who can provide the highlight of the night. Joseph Diaz is a former world champion while Oscar Duarte is a young, aggressive, powerful, and durable boxer who is hungry for success. Here is our Diaz vs Duarte prediction.
Diaz vs Duarte Prediction: Can Diaz Bounce Back After 4 Defeats In 5 Fights?
Joseph Diaz Preview
Joseph Diaz entered the professional stage in 2012 and had a brilliant career start. He was destined to fight for world titles and finally earned that right after 26 wins in a row.
He fought Gary Russell Jr. for his WBC featherweight title in May 2018 and suffered his first loss via unanimous decision. He bounced back with several wins in a row and a change of weight class, stepping up from 125 to 130.
In 2020, he won the IBF super featherweight title after beating Tevin Farmer via unanimous decision. In 2021, he won the vacant WBC Interim lightweight title against Javier Fortuna and that was his last big night.
A year after winning the interim title, he was finally scheduled to fight for Devin Haney's title and lost via UD. Since then, Joseph Diaz has had a single win in four fights and he also moved up to 140.
His age (31), his bad form, and his lack of knockout power will be key for our Diaz vs Duarte prediction. But before that, let's take a closer look at his opponent.
Oscar Duarte Preview
Oscar Duarte began his professional career when he was just 18 years old and quickly accumulated a serious number of KO wins. Unlike Diaz, he has knockout power, hence the 21 knockouts in 26 wins.
His only disadvantage is the experience at the highest level. He has never fought for world titles and lost against the only top-ranked opponent he faced – Ryan Garcia.
It remains to be seen if Duarte is good enough to compete in super lightweight but we generally like what we've seen from him. This is a huge opportunity to beat a former champion. Our only issue is the choice between a KO and a decision for our Diaz vs Duarte prediction.
Our Joseph Diaz vs Oscar Duarte Prediction: A Rare Decision Win for Duarte
Duarte was on an impressive streak of eleven straight stoppage victories before he fought Ryan Garcia. He's not afraid to go forward and throw a lot of punches, looking for the one that will finish the fight. He also overlaps well and protects both his head and body.
For him, this fight is a great chance to bounce back from his defeat and put his name among the contenders in this weight class.
This fight could be spectacular and intense. Duarte will try to close the distance and deliver powerful blows to the body and head. Joseph Diaz has the advantage in experience but his career has been on the decline for years and Duarte has the power advantage.
It is hard to imagine how Diaz will stop Duarte in this bout. Even if he survives the full fight, Duarte is undoubtedly going to land more punches and win the decision.
For us, a decision win in favor of Oscar is the most logical Diaz vs Duarte prediction. On paper, he has the power to knock Diaz out but the American has never been knocked out in his career and he already fought guys like Devin Haney and William Zepeda. Whatever the result, this will be a good fight and both fighters are guaranteed to go home with a lot of money.
