Joseph Diaz Jr. vs Jesus Perez Campos Preview February 15th, 2024
Former IBF Junior Lightweight Champion Joseph ‘JoJo’ Diaz Jr of Downey, California returns to the ring this Thursday, February 15th when he takes on Jesus Perez Campos of Mexico. The 10-round junior welterweight tilt from Commerce, California can be seen live in most nations on DAZN. Diaz beat Jerry Perez by a 10 round unanimous decision in July in his last outing to snap a three-fight losing skid. Before that he dropped a 10-round split decision to Mercito Gesta, a 12-round unanimous decision to William Zepeda and a 12-round unanimous decision to Devin Haney in a shot at the WBC Lightweight Title. Perez last fought in May when he dropped an eight-round unanimous decision to Brian Norman Jr.
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Diaz Jr. vs Perez Campos Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Jesus Perez Campos +425
- Joseph Diaz Jr -650
My Pick
The 31-year-old southpaw Diaz Jr. lost his first world title shot when he dropped a unanimous decision to WBC Featherweight Champion Gary Russell Jr. in May, 2018. He then beat WBA Titleholder Jesus Rojas by unanimous decision three months later but came in overweight for the fight and wasn’t able to win the belt. It was third time lucky for him though when he beat Tevin Farmer for the IBF Super Featherweight Title via unanimous decision in 2020.
He then lost the belt when he failed to make weight against Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov in February, 2021 and ended up fighting to a 12-round draw with him. In his following fight he won the WBC interim belt with a unanimous decision over Javier Fortuna but lost it against Devin Haney and was then beaten by Zepeda and Gesta before rebounding with the win over Perez in his last outing to bring his pro record to 33-4-1 with 15 Ko’s. As an amateur, Diaz was a member of the U.S. Olympic Boxing Team at the 2012 Games in London, England where he went 1-1 as a bantamweight. He also reached the quarterfinals of the 2011 World Amateur Championships.
Diaz turned pro in December, 2012 and has fought 295 rounds since. He has average power at best in his fists with 45.5 per cent of his wins coming by way of stoppage and and has gone the distance in 11 of his last 12 fights. He stands 5-feet-6-inches tall with a 64-inch inch and has also captured the NABF and WBO-NABO Featherweight Titles and the WBA Gold Super Featherweight Crown. He also has wins over Jesus Cuadro, Freddy Fonseca, Victor Terrazas, Rafael Rivera, Manuel Avila, Horacio Garcia, Jayson Velez, Hugo Partida, Rene Alvarado, Roberto Castaneda and Ruben Tamayo.
The 26-year-old Perez Campos makes the ring walk with a mark of 24-5 with 18 Ko’s and has boxed 115 rounds since making his pro debut in 2016 as a teenager. Unfortunately there’s no height and reach information on him so we don’t know how he stacks up size-wise against Diaz. He does possess quite a bit more power than Diaz though as 75 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage. He’s lost five of his last eight fights though and two in a row with just two stoppage victories in that span.
His first pro loss came at the hands of Ruslan Mediyev by 10-round unanimous decision in 2018 and was also beaten by 10-round unanimous decision by Carlos Diaz the same year. He dropped another 10-round unanimous nod to Danielito Zorrilla in 2019 as well as to alexis Rocha in 2022 and to Brian Norman in his last outing in May. Perez Campos has a pretty sturdy chin as he’s never been stopped but he struggles when stepping up in class, which is what he’ll be doing this Thursday night. Most of his wins up to now have come against opponents with losing records.
Prediction…
Diaz appeared to get his career back on track with his win over Perez in July after suffering three straight defeats. He’s not a huge favorite at our recommended betting site. He’s still won only two of his last six fights though with the three defeats and a draw. He’s taking on a decent young boxer here and Diaz can’t afford to take Perez Campos lightly. Still, Diaz has greater experience and should have enough left in the tank to pull out a win.
Diaz’s experience should be the difference.
Play: Diaz Jr -650 @ BetOnline.ag
Check out my recent boxing betting picks to see my current form.
Jesus Perez Campos betting • Joseph Diaz Jr. betting