BOXING: DIAZ SCORES 4TH-ROUND KO.Byline: Nevin Barich Nevin Barich (born August 6, 1979) is a former American sports journalist now working as the Senior Editor of The National Notary, a trade magazine based in Los Angeles with a circulation of more than 300,000 nationwide. Staff Writer ANAHEIM - Julio Diaz didn't know until a few days ago he was again knocking on the door of a world title shot. Diaz, a lightweight contender, scored a fourth-round knockout over journeyman Felix St. Kitts Noun 1. St. Kitts - the largest of the islands comprising Saint Christopher-Nevis Saint Kitts, St. Christopher, Saint Christopher Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Christopher-Nevis, Saint Kitts and Nevis, St. Christopher-Nevis, St. on Saturday night in front of 3,083 at the Pond. Two days ago, Diaz (26-2, 19 knockouts) was told by his promoter, Top Rank, that a victory over St. Kitts (12-3-2, seven KOs) would put him in line to fight the winner of next month's Floyd Mayweather Floyd Mayweather is the name of two persons, father and son:
WBC abbr. white blood cell WBC, n stands for white blood cell. title fight. ``The world title has always been on my mind,'' Diaz said. ``Now, it's just on my mind harder than ever.'' This is the second time Diaz has been on the cusp of a world title shot. In October 2001, he lost a controversial split decision to Angel Manfredy in an IBF IBF See: International Banking Facility lightweight-title elimination bout. In that fight, Diaz landed nearly 100 more punches than Manfredy but was penalized pe·nal·ize tr.v. pe·nal·ized, pe·nal·iz·ing, pe·nal·iz·es 1. To subject to a penalty, especially for infringement of a law or official regulation. See Synonyms at punish. 2. two points for low blows. Then, after defeating trial horse Verdell Smith in January, Diaz suffered a first-round loss to journeyman Juan Valenzuela in April, knocking him out of the top 10. ``I won't make the same mistake again,'' Diaz said of the loss. ``I'm smarter now, in my training, everything.'' Including the victory Saturday, Diaz has won two in a row. Also on the card, junior bantamweight contender Martin Castillo (22-1-1, 14 KOs) scored an eighth-round knockout of Keyri Wong (9-4-1, nine KOs). The bout featured several toe-to-toe exchanges before Castillo stunned Wong with a three-punch combo in the eighth. Castillo scored the knockdown soon after with a follow-up flurry with 35 seconds remaining. Wong, who was cut above the right eye in the eighth, got up and survived the round. However, the referee wouldn't let him come out for the ninth after it was determined his cut was too severe to continue. ``From the third round on, when I started hitting him with some really good shots, I felt in control,'' said Castillo, ranked third by the IBF. It was Castillo's first fight since a unanimous-decision loss to IBF titleholder ti·tle·hold·er n. 1. One, especially a champion, who holds a title. 2. One that holds legal title to something, such as a motor vehicle. Felix Machado in March. |
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