At the grand unveiling of this year’s Golden Boy Fight Night on DAZN, Jesus Perez of Tijuana decided to rewrite the script in a showdown against the favorite, Joseph Diaz Jr. from South El Monte. Amidst the electrifying ambiance of The Commerce Casino & Hotel, the super lightweight main event unfolded more like a drama than a fight, with Diaz Jr. adding a bit of theatrics by propelling Perez out of the ring, earning himself a deduction that might as well have been for dramatic effect in the fifth round. The judges, perhaps as bewildered as the audience, tallied a crazy mix of scores at 95-45, 94-96, and 90-99, eventually handing Perez a victory by split decision that had everyone scratching their heads. I had JoJo Diaz winning the fight by a round or two. And yes, all of this spectacle was generously streamed worldwide on DAZN for the global audience’s amusement.
Perez, basking in the glory of his unexpected triumph, shared, “Tonight was a testament to hard work, or so they say. Every fighter has their share of struggles, but we somehow stumbled across the finish line first tonight. Hats off to Diaz; he’s quite the fighter, even if tonight wasn’t his best showing. I guess being the favorite doesn’t always mean you get the trophy.”
Diaz, not one to hold back, lamented, “I clearly won that fight, or at least in a parallel universe, I did. It seems fairness decided to take the night off! I put my soul into training for my beloved fans, really, thank you all for witnessing this travesty!”
In the undercard, Eric Tudor from Fort Lauderdale made a ‘dramatic’ comeback in a super welterweight bout against Luis Ramos from Puerto Rico, with the judges unanimously deciding that Tudor deserved a clean slate of 80-72 across the board. Meanwhile, San Diego’s Jorge Chavez and Diuhl Olguin from Guadalajara treated fans to a seesaw battle in the featherweight category, with Chavez picking himself up from an early setback to clinch a unanimous victory, as if the script demanded a happy ending for him too.
Kicking off the action, Joshua Garcia from Moreno Valley showcased his version of a quick finish, wrapping up his lightweight tussle with Eric Lozada from Los Angeles in just 1:45 of the first round, because why drag it out, right? And to set the stage, Sasha Tudor from Fort Lauderdale squared off against Josias Gonzalez from Jalisco in a middleweight clash that ended in a split draw, because apparently, not all stories have a clear ending.
