Joseph Diaz arrived 30 minutes early for Thursday's press conference, but if the pregame press conference is any indication of how things are going in camp, things are promising.
Diaz, who faces Oscar Duralte on Saturday (April 27) at Save Mart Center in Fresno, will also have a new coach in Cristian Guevara.
Diaz (33-5-1, 15 KOs) will face Duarte (26-2-1, 21 KOs) with a new team nearly two months after his last loss, but Diaz said boxing is the best for him. He admitted he was having fun again.
The 2012 U.S. Olympian and IBF junior lightweight titleholder has a big fight coming up on Saturday.
“We get along from a lot of points of view, including how we look at life, and that helps a lot,” Guevara said of their new partnership. “It feels like a brotherly relationship. We can just talk to each other without questioning anything.”
Guevara will be the primary voice in Diaz's corner and will face off against the legendary Robert Garcia. While it's the fighters who fight the fights, the trainers motivate them through scenarios and help them plan strategies, Diaz praised Guevara.
“He's a very good guy,” Diaz told BoxingScene. “We covered all the bases there. We went back to the way we used to fight, we went back to loving boxing and enjoying it.”
After a disappointing loss to (Jesus Antonio) Perez, Díaz initially said he didn't want to return right away, but he returned to the ring three months later. A quick return is a positive sign for Guevara.
“what [the quick return] What you can tell from that is that he's hungry and motivated,” Guevara said. “I think that's a positive thing from the standpoint that he's feeling better and he's going to be back to work soon. I look at that as a positive.”
Diaz went through a tough period in his career, but is now looking to revive his career with a coach who has worked with Luis Neri and Luis Alberto López (as chief second).