Regis Prograis (30-3-24 KOs) received a chorus of boos in his post-fight interview following his controversial 10-round unanimous decision win over Joseph ‘JoJo’ Diaz (34-8-1, 15 KOs) last Saturday night at the University of Illinois, Chicago.
(Credit: Golden Boy/Cris Esqueda)
Was Prograis Really Hurt Once?
Prograis claimed after the fight that he’d been hurt only in the first round by Diaz in their 142-lb catchweight fight in the co-feature bout in a Golden Boy-promoted event on DAZN.
It looked like Regis was hurt in almost every round of the fight except the 10th. ‘JoJo’ had him staggering with hard shots on the inside. After the first round, Prograis looked incapable of taking any hard shots from JoJo without staggering.
It was troubling to see the former WBA and WBC light welterweight champion Prograis getting buzzed by a fighter who started his career at 126.
The scores were 98-92, 96-94, and 96-94.
“JoJo’ was way rougher. I know he was a 130-pounder, and he was coming up to my division, but ‘JoJo’ is tough,” said Regis Prograis to Chris Mannix after his win over Joseph Diaz last Saturday. “I felt like I won the fight. My jab was working all night; it was landing. He caught me with some big shots. I was probably buzzed the first time he caught me. After that, I wasn’t buzzed no more.”
After Prograis watches the replay of the fight, he’ll agree that he was hurt more than once. His legs were gone in rounds two through nine when he was hit hard by Diaz. It wasn’t a balance thing. He appeared legitimately hurt.
Chin Issues for Prograis?
“With my feet, I get off balance a lot. That’s why I looked like I was hurt more than I did, but he did catch me,” said Prograis. “He’s stronger than you think. He caught me with the first punch, and it kind of woke me up. I was on for the rest of the fight. My team told me, ‘Don’t get in an exchange with him. That’s what he wants you to do. Just keep your jab. That’s what I did for most of the fight,” said Prograis.
If this were just this fight, in which Prograis had chin issues, one could overlook it, but this is his third consecutive contest being staggered by a guy not known for having power. Jack Catterall and Devin Haney had hurt Regis in their two previous bouts.
