KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- A vacant WBO junior lightweight title will be on the line July 28. Vying for that title, which will stream live on ESPN+, will be Christopher Diaz (23-0, 15 KOs) and Masayuki Ito (23-1-1, 12 KOs). It will be the first world title fight for both men, although Ito has fought for and won titles in Asia.
Diaz hails from Puerto Rico and fights out of the orthodox stance. The 23-year-old has good power, especially for a lightweight, and fast hands. Diaz works behind a piston like jab and has a huge left hook, although at times he will throw that punch very wide. As good as his left hook is, Diaz's best punch might be his right hand and when he smells blood in the water he goes in for the kill. He is also the type of fighter who should consistently make good television fights because of his skills and aggressiveness.
While Diaz has built an impressive record for such a young age he faced a ton of soft touches early in his career. Most good prospects begin their career against safe opposition but Diaz didn't really step up his level of competition until 2016 and his resume still lacks any marquee names. Saturday will also mark the first time Diaz has ever been scheduled to go 12 rounds. His two previous fights were 10-round affairs but he's never gone more than eight rounds in his professional career. Meanwhile, his opponent Ito has gone 10 rounds or more on multiple occasions.
Ito is also an orthodox fighter and like many Japanese fighters he loves to trade leather. When he uses his jab, which isn't that often, he uses it as more of a measuring stick than a weapon. Ito has a pretty good left hook but his best punch is his right hand. He loves to throw his right hand and is skillful with it, although he will sometimes headhunt. While Ito does have respectable power he isn't a huge puncher and that could cause problems if he tries to stand and trade with the heavier handed Diaz.
The last time Ito lost a fight was in 2015. Since that loss he's gone 7-0 with five knockouts and he's currently riding a three fight knockout streak. He's won titles in Asia but just like Diaz, he lacks any top level marquee names on his resume. The argument can be made that whoever wins this fight will have secured the biggest victory of their respective career.
Both Diaz and Ito like to trade leather so this should be a very exciting fight. They could each have their chins checked in this bout but Ito needs to hope his chin is better since Diaz is clearly the bigger puncher. Diaz is an aggressive fighter who likes to walk opponents down and Ito also has an aggressive style which sees him come forward for most of his fights. Ito doesn't use his jab much and that will be a problem in this fight because he will have to pay the price to get inside and land punches of his own. Look for Diaz to catch Ito with stiff jabs on his way in and pick his spots to unload his power punches.
PREDICTION: Masayuki Ito is a quality fighter but his style won't do him any favors against Christopher Diaz. The action in this fight will be good but it will be Diaz who consistently gets the better of it. Diaz will drop Ito at least once on his way to a wide unanimous decision win.
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| Diaz catching an opponent with a clean uppercut |
While Diaz has built an impressive record for such a young age he faced a ton of soft touches early in his career. Most good prospects begin their career against safe opposition but Diaz didn't really step up his level of competition until 2016 and his resume still lacks any marquee names. Saturday will also mark the first time Diaz has ever been scheduled to go 12 rounds. His two previous fights were 10-round affairs but he's never gone more than eight rounds in his professional career. Meanwhile, his opponent Ito has gone 10 rounds or more on multiple occasions.
Ito is also an orthodox fighter and like many Japanese fighters he loves to trade leather. When he uses his jab, which isn't that often, he uses it as more of a measuring stick than a weapon. Ito has a pretty good left hook but his best punch is his right hand. He loves to throw his right hand and is skillful with it, although he will sometimes headhunt. While Ito does have respectable power he isn't a huge puncher and that could cause problems if he tries to stand and trade with the heavier handed Diaz.
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| Ito catching Lorenzo Villanueva with a sharp jab |
Both Diaz and Ito like to trade leather so this should be a very exciting fight. They could each have their chins checked in this bout but Ito needs to hope his chin is better since Diaz is clearly the bigger puncher. Diaz is an aggressive fighter who likes to walk opponents down and Ito also has an aggressive style which sees him come forward for most of his fights. Ito doesn't use his jab much and that will be a problem in this fight because he will have to pay the price to get inside and land punches of his own. Look for Diaz to catch Ito with stiff jabs on his way in and pick his spots to unload his power punches.
PREDICTION: Masayuki Ito is a quality fighter but his style won't do him any favors against Christopher Diaz. The action in this fight will be good but it will be Diaz who consistently gets the better of it. Diaz will drop Ito at least once on his way to a wide unanimous decision win.
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