Mercito Gesta edges Joseph Diaz in Long Beach

Saturday night it was fight night at the Walter Pyramid on the campus of Long Beach (CA) State University.

The initial headline bout between veteran Gabe Rosado, making his 175-pound debut, and former 168-pound world champion, and light heavyweight title challenger, Gilberto Ramirez, was scrapped because Ramirez was a dozen pounds off the contracted weight. So, it was chief undercard fighters, Joseph Diaz and Mercito Gesta elevated into the main slot.

Diaz was returning from an October loss and was looking to get back in line for another world title shot with an impressive victory. Gesta knew a win in this fight would be a huge step for him and put him in a good spot for another big fight. He was coming into the fight with a record of 2-2-1 from 2018 through 2022 (inactive in 2020 and 2021).

Main Event

Super lightweight Filipino Mercito “No Mercy” Gesta (34-3-3, 17 KOs) SD 10 over California’s former world champion, and 2012 U.S Olympian, Joseph “JoJo” Diaz, Jr. (32-4-1, 15 KOs). The judges came in with scores of 99-91 Gesta, 98-92 Gesta, and 97-93 Diaz.

The main event was a contrast of styles with Gesta looking to box, move and pick his spots to get aggressive while Diaz seemed to be looking to load up and land a big shot. In the end, 2 of the 3 judges liked the more consistent pace of Gesta that sees the former world title challenger put himself in a good spot for another big fight, perhaps even a title shot.

After the fight Diaz was disappointed, and surprised, he didn’t get the decision in a fight he thought he won.

“I’m in a little bit of disbelief, just got to go back to the drawing board, get better. Boxing is a cruel sport but losses don’t define you”, said Diaz. “It’s just about progressing and getting better. I’ll go back to the gym and work on what I have to work on; I’ll be back”, he said.

As for the victorious Gesta, he was happy with the win and looked forward to what is next.

“He gave me a hell of a fight,” Gesta told DAZN’s, Chris Mannix. “We gave the fans a good fight right here. I’m happy with the outcome. I’m a professional and a gentleman”, he said”.

Gesta, who is trained by Wild Card Gym’s Marvin Somodio, just wants the best lightweights out there. But on this night, he was happy to enjoy the moment with his newest family member.

“This win means a lot to me,” noted Gesta. “I started a new chapter in my life. We just had a baby. It’s such a blessing to be a father. I won this fight not just for myself, but also for our newborn baby.”

Under Card Action

Lightweight Oscar Duarte (25-1-1, 20 KOs) KO 8 Alex Martin (18-5, 6 KOs)

Super welterweight Eric Tudor (8-0, 6 KO’s) W UD 8 Damoni Cato-Cain (7-0-1, 6 KOs)

Lightweight Dalis Kaleioupu (4-0, 3 KOs) UD 6 Jonathan Perez (40-35, 32 KOs) 

Featherweight Jorge Chavez (5-0, 4 KO’s) TKO 1 Bryan Perez (12-17-1, 11 KOs)  

Super featherweight Patricio Manuel (2-0) TD 4 Hien Huynh (1-2)