Diaz So Close, Yet So Far From Pacquiao By Steve Kim (March 14, 2008) Send this page to friend Give us your feedback David Diaz makes no bones about it. When Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez duke it out on Saturday night, he'll probably be the only one of Mexican descent inside the Mandalay Bay Events Center that will be openly rooting for the Filipino icon. "Yeah, definitely," he admits, laughing at the thought. But this isn't about any lack of nationalistic pride; it’s just pure business. Diaz needs a Pacquiao win in the worst way because he could be headed for a showdown with 'the Pac Man' in late June. But first things first, as he has to get past rugged Ramon Montano on the undercard, and he swears he's not looking past the journeyman from Sonora, Mexico. "I'm pretty good at seeing what's in front of me and what I have to do first before getting in with Pacquiao. Pacquiao's not really in my mind right now, to be honest with you. We know we got a tough fight with Montano, so we got to take care of that before anything." In many respects, bouts of this nature are actually more important than the big fights themselves. After all, once you get to the Promised Land, your payday is assured whether you win, lose or draw. Blow the fight before that, and you have to basically start over. "Exactly, that's why I tell you that the big fight for me is Montano," said Diaz, who's the reigning WBC lightweight champion. This non-title affair has a weight limit of 137 pounds. "We got a big obstacle, so to speak, in front of us and we got to take care of that first." Should both Diaz and Pacquiao win this weekend, the deal is signed, sealed and delivered. "June 28th, at the Mandalay Bay," promoter Bob Arum would tell Maxboxing on Thursday. But this has a familiar feel for Top Rank, who just a few weeks ago was hoping to wrap up a June fight between middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik and John Duddy. After Pavlik's second victory over Jermain Taylor on February 16th, the Top Rank brass would go to New York to see Duddy face the supposedly hand-picked Walid Smichet, whom Duddy was expected to handle quite easily. Before that night’s bout at the Madison Square Garden, Arum had come to terms with Duddy's representatives. One problem, though. Smichet apparently wasn't given the script and would proceed to beat Duddy to the punch time and time again. He would be the victim of a dubious decision, but the damage was done. Because of the cuts suffered by Duddy, he would not be available to face Pavlik in June. What do they say about the best laid plans of mice and men? When asked if he has a sense of deja vu, Arum would state in mock horror: "Don't remind me!!!" Diaz-Montano could be a bruising brawl between two fighters who aren't difficult to find and who will stand in front of each other all night. Montano gave Pacquiao some quality rounds at the Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood in the lead up to this weekend’s event. As for Diaz, Arum describes him thusly: "He isn't the most skilled guy, just one of the most determined, courageous guys and he's a tough fighter to beat. He fights like a Jake LaMotta used to fight, throws a million punches, and he's not the biggest puncher, but he wears you down and he never gives up and he's a hard guy to beat." Diaz is the type of fighter whose style and temperament lends itself to being in all-action affairs. After defeating Jose Armando Santa Cruz in dramatic fashion in August of 2006, he would then battle the legendary Erik Morales last August in an entertaining contest where he would have to get off the canvas and come from behind on the scorecards late to retain his belt. "I expected him to be like that, to come at me and try to take the title," said Diaz of 'El Terrible'. "I really was surprised that he stood in there as long as he did, still having that great heart that he has to go all 12 rounds. It was a great fight, my hat’s off to him, my respects." The Morales assignment came in his hometown of Chicago. "It was a dream come true for me. I had always wanted to bring a title fight to Chicago and me being the headliner of it, trying to win the title there in Chicago. But this time I get to defend my title and it was an awesome feeling and it was great," he says. Now, he's 'thisclose' to landing a career defining fight. He couldn't have imagined this as he took a two year hiatus from boxing at the turn of the century after representing the United States in the 1996 Olympic Games. "Honestly, no, I didn't" he admitted. "I thought I'd just come back and do a couple of fights, but not where I'm at. I did not see this. But Jim Strickland, my manager, he did. So thanks to him, I'm where I'm at." K2 So what does the future hold for the Klitschko brothers? "Wladimir will fight Tony Thompson or Alexander Povetkin in July. It'll be in Europe," said adviser Shelly Finkel. As for the comebacking (well, at least he's attempting to) Vitali Klitschko, Finkel states, "He will fight probably this summer, it will be against Sam Peter." Klitschko was named 'champion emeritus' (or something to that effect) by the WBC, so despite not having fought in a couple of years, he could be getting an immediate shot at the title. But here's the thing, can 'Britte-ly' actually make it into the ring without injuring himself and causing the postponement of any scheduled fight? "Well, lets see how he is in training," says Finkel. "If he's in training the way I hope, then the health won’t be an issue." JUNE 7TH I've been told that Showtime could be airing a doubleheader featuring the rematch between WBO welterweight champion Carlos Quintana and Paul Williams and a jr. middleweight contest between Vernon Forrest and Sergio Mora on June 7th. The Nokia Theatre (which is across the street from the Staples Center in Los Angeles) and venues in Nevada are being discussed for that promotion. For Questions or Comments E-Mail Steve Kim at k9kim@maxboxing.com Today's Boxing Press Discuss this Topic - Go to the forums