Joseph “JoJo” Diaz Jr. built a 45-fight professional boxing career without ever once stepping into a UK ring. That changes next month and it’s happening bare-knuckle.
The 2012 US Olympian, who won an IBF super-featherweight world title over Tevin Farmer and shared the ring with elite names like Gary Russell Jr. and Regis Prograis, made the jump to bare-knuckle boxing earlier this year. He opened that chapter with a first-round knockout over Nate Williams at BKB 56 in Los Angeles.
Now the 33-year-old southpaw, who lost to Devin Haney in 2021, is confirmed for BKB 60 on October 10, where he’ll face Brian Hyslop in a super-lightweight bout at Newcastle’s Utilita Arena.
I’ve fought all over the States and in Mexico, but I’ve never stepped into a ring in the UK, not once in my whole career. Newcastle is going to be the first, and I’m doing it bare knuckle. This is a new chapter for me and I want the fans here to see exactly what a world champion looks like up close.
Diaz said making his UK debut specifically in Newcastle, and doing it bare-knuckle, represents a genuinely new chapter in his career, adding that he wants the crowd there to see up close what a former world champion looks like in the ring.
The October 10 card is headlined by a BKB super-welterweight world title fight between Filipino titleholder Rolando Dy and five-time champion Scott McHugh.
