Who won Russell Jr vs Diaz?

Gary Russell Jr beat Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest on Saturday 19th May 2018 at MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland.

The scorecards were announced as 115-113, 117-111, 117-111 in favor of winner Gary Russell Jr.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 12 rounds in the Featherweight division, which meant the weight limit was 126 pounds (9 stone or 57.1 KG).

This contest was for the WBC featherweight championship of the world.

Russell Jr vs Diaz stats

Gary Russell Jr stepped into the ring with a record of 28 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws, 17 of those wins coming by the way of knock out.

Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz made his way to the ring with an unblemished record of 26 wins and 0 draws, with 14 of those by knock out.

The stats suggested Russell Jr had a slight advantage in power over Diaz, with a 61% knock out percentage over Diaz's 54%.

Gary Russell Jr was the older man by 5 years, at 34 years old.

Diaz had a height advantage of 1 inch over Russell Jr. Despite this, both fighters had equal reach.

Both Gary Russell Jr & Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz fought out of a southpaw stance.

Russell Jr was arguably the more experienced fighter, having had 3 more fights, and made his debut in 2009, 3 years and 10 months earlier than Diaz, whose first professional fight was in 2012. He had fought 91 less professional rounds, 172 to Diaz's 263.

Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz was ranked number 1 by the WBC in the 126lb division.

Russell Jr vs Diaz form

Russell Jr had won 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 3 of them, going the distance twice.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had defeated Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz on 19th May 2018 by unanimous decision in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at MGM National Harbor, Oxon Hill, Maryland, United States.

Previous to that, he had defeated Oscar Escandon on 20th May 2017 by technical knockout in the 7th round in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at MGM National Harbor, Oxon Hill.

Going into that contest, he had beat Patrick Hyland on 16th April 2016 by technical knockout in the 2nd round in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at Foxwoods Resort, Mashantucket.

Before that, he had won against Jhonny Gonzalez on 28th March 2015 by technical knockout in the 4th round in their WBC World Featherweight championship fight at Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas.

He had beat Christopher Martin on 20th December 2014 by unanimous decision in their 10 round contest at Little Creek Casino Resort, Shelton.

Diaz had won 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 1 of them, going the distance 4 times.

In his last fight before this contest, he had defeated Tevin Farmer on 30th January 2020 by unanimous decision in their IBF World Junior Lightweight championship fight at Meridian at Island Gardens, Florida, United States.

Previous to that, he had defeated Jesus Cuadro on 21st September 2019 by majority decision in their 12 round contest at Auditorio del Estado, Baja California, Mexico.

Going into that contest, he had won against Freddy Fonseca on 4th May 2019 by technical knockout in the 7th round at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, United States.

Before that, he had defeated Charles Huerta on 9th February 2019 by unanimous decision in their 10 round contest at Fantasy Springs Casino, California.

He had beat Jesus M Rojas on 11th August 2018 by unanimous decision in their WBA World Featherweight championship fight at The Avalon, California.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz had been fighting more than Gary Russell Jr.

Going to this contest, Gary Russell Jr had last fought 4 years, 2 months and 28 days ago, while Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz's last outing had been 2 years, 6 months and 17 days ago.

Russell Jr's last 5 fights had come over a period of 7 years, 7 months and 27 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 1 year, 6 months and 13 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 35 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 7 rounds on average.

Diaz's last 5 fights had come over a period of 4 years and 5 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 9 months and 20 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 53 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 10.6 rounds on average.

What time did Russell Jr vs Diaz start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 11:00 PM EST / 8:00 PM PST at MGM National Harbor, Oxon Hill, Maryland, United States, which was around 4:00 AM BST in the UK.

Who broadcast Russell Jr vs Diaz?

Russell Jr vs Diaz was broadcast on ShowTime in the US.

What were the odds on Russell Jr vs Diaz?

Gary Russell Jr was a 29/100 (-344) favourite going into the contest, while Joseph ‘Jo Jo’ Diaz made his way into the ring at 11/4 (+275) with oddsmakers.