LAS VEGAS — Devin Haney retained his WBC lightweight title by outclassing Joseph "JoJo" Diaz Jr. to earn a unanimous decision at the MGM Grand Garden on Saturday night.
Haney is now targeting George Kambosos Jr., who defeated Teofimo Lopez last week to claim the WBA, WBO, IBF and WBC (Franchise) titles, to finally determine who is the true undisputed champion of the 135-pound division.
"Come on, let's do it for all the belts. Let's do it next," Haney said after pulling off the victory. Kambosos is looking to stage his first title defense in his home country of Australia, and Haney has no problem heading down under for the biggest fight of his career.
"I'll go to Jupiter if I have to," he said.
Haney worked behind a sharp jab, a right to the body and controlling the distance as Diaz struggled to get in fighting range early in the bout. The 23-year-old also demonstrated superior footwork and an exceptional chin to stay out of trouble when Diaz decided to crank up the pressure. But his punch variety and skill set proved to be the difference in front of a surprisingly pro-Diaz crowd in Haney's hometown.
Diaz had his moments and showcased his toughness in spurts. With the fight getting out of hand, he closed the show strong and landed massive left hands that might have had other opponents in trouble. But Haney weathered the storm and fired back with the crowd on its feet.
In the end, the judges' scorecards all favored Haney, 117-111, 117-111 and 116-112. The champion improved to 27-0; he hopes to land a fight for the undisputed title in 2022.
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Sporting News provided live updates and highlights from the Haney-Diaz card. Here's how it all went down.
Devin Haney vs. JoJo Diaz Jr. live updates, highlights
(All times Eastern.)
Devin Haney def. Jojo Diaz via unanimous decision; 117-111, 117-111, 116-112
Round 12 (12:11 a.m.): Diaz opens the final round swarming Haney with punches. He’s going for it. Kinda late. Big left hand by Diaz lands! Haney stands firm. Another left hand. Haney comes back with a trio of power shots! Diaz buzzes Haney. Oh, it’s a war. Haney comes back with an overhand right. Haney chases Diaz down to close the fight. 10-9, Diaz (117-111, Haney)
Round 11 (12:07 a.m.): Haney lands a left hand and an uppercut. Haney is cracking Diaz. Diaz is taking these shots but they are clean. Beautiful left uppercut by Haney. Right hand by Diaz lands. Left hook by Haney. Clear Haney round. 10-9, Haney (108-101, Haney)
Round 10 (12:03 a.m.): Diaz continues to make the mistake of standing and not throwing. But he lands a left hook. Diaz lands to the body and head. Haney back to work picking off Diaz. Right hand bounces off Diaz’s forehead. Left hand rocks Diaz. Haney may have stunned Diaz at the end of the round and snatches a close one. 10-9, Haney (98-92, Haney)
Round 9 (11:59 p.m.): Diaz hasn’t had much of an adjustment. He’s looking for the same left hook over the jab. Haney isn’t giving it to him. Haney has no problem picking Diaz off. Diaz smothers Haney and gets some shots in but Haney backs off and lands a right hand. Diaz stands in front of Haney and eats a combination. Haney stings Diaz with a right hand. Diaz with an overhand right. Diaz and Haney exchange big shots to close. A very close and exciting round for Haney 10-9, Haney (88-83, Haney)
Round 8 (11:55 p.m.): Diaz needs to find a way to make Haney uncomfortable. He’s not. Haney picking him off again. Body head hooks by Haney. Diaz comes forward but lands nothing. 10-9, Haney (78-74, Haney)
Round 7 (11:51 p.m.): Diaz opens by going to the body but eats an uppercut for his trouble. Haney is the one starting and finishing exchanges. Haney mixing it up more and lands a left uppercut. Diaz lands a hard left hand and rocks Haney! Haney is smiling but Diaz has landed some big shots. Haney collects himself and gets back behind the jab. But Diaz’s big left hand takes the round. 10-9, Diaz (68-65, Haney)
Round 6 (11:47 p.m.): Diaz starts off fast and lands a combination. Haney controlled the distance with the jab, keeping Diaz out of range. Body shot and a right hand. Haney picking off Diaz with ease. Haney’s footwork is pristine. He keeps putting himself in a position to land. Diaz looks baffled by this. 10-9, Haney (59-55, Haney)
Round 5 (11:44 p.m.): Haney digging to the body with some thudding shots to open the fifth. Pair of rights from Haney land. Haney teeing off on Diaz. Diaz presses and lands to the body. Haney is back to working behind the jab and landing to the body to close the round. 10-9, Haney (49-46, Haney)
Round 4 (11:40 p.m.): JoJo is moving forward but he’s not moving his head. Diaz lands a left hand and follows with a right. He shoves Haney down. Smart to rough him up. Diaz coming forward with more intent and lands a hard left hand. We’ve got a fight. Hard jab by Haney. They mix it up and Haney lands a short left. Haney with a hard jab to close the round. Close. JoJo’s round. 10-9, Diaz (39-37, Haney)
Round 3 (11:35 p.m.): Diaz already looks frustrated and opens the round with body shots. Haney defends and lands a body shot of his own. Diaz trying to be aggressive but Haney is having no problems hitting him. Diaz is just walking straight in and throwing nothing. Haney is ripping him apart. Diaz finally lands an uppercut. I don’t know what this strategy is but it’s terrible. Diaz is having a little more success but Haney is just too damn sharp. 10-9, Haney (30-27, Haney)
Round 2 (11:31 p.m.): Diaz comes out firing in the second. Nothing there and Haney slaps him with a combination. Body shot by Haney. This is rough. Haney eats a left hand from Diaz. Haney shakes it off and goes back to the body. Diaz lands a left and Haney comes right back with a one-two. Diaz opening up a little more to close the round but he’s getting eaten up by Haney. 10-9, Haney (20-18, Haney)
Round 1 (11:28 p.m.): Haney starts off as the aggressor. Popping the jab. Straight right hand. Rakes him with a right hook and goes to the body. Haney lands another right. Jojo is waiting for his moment. Haney counters Diaz with a hard right hand. Haney is landing at will. He’s extremely sharp. Head and body shots from Haney landing. Target practice. 10-9, Haney
11:17 p.m.: Diaz makes his ring walk to a loud pop while Haney might as well be playing a road game as the crowd showers him with boos.
11:03 p.m.: DAZN has had to kill a lot of time between fights with four consecutive knockouts. But it seems like the main event is finally upon us as both Haney and Diaz are making their final preparations.
10:31 p.m.: Carlos Diaz tried to make it a fight but Love was just too damn sharp. Diaz made an attempt to bring the fight to Love but was met with another assault of punches. The referee had seen enough and rescued Diaz from further punishment at the 1:22 mark.
Montana Love dropped Diaz THREE times in Round 2 😳#HaneyDiazJr pic.twitter.com/kDCvzxUd76
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) December 5, 2021
10:28 p.m.: Montana Love is showing out already with a trio of knockdowns in the second round. Carlos Diaz has a ton of heart. But that's about it.
10:20 p.m.: Montana Love enters with the Mexican ring attire with his dog under his arm. An epic troll job.
Epic troll job by Montana Love and his dog. pic.twitter.com/02UYCTGIfC
— Andreas Hale (@AndreasHale) December 5, 2021
9:56 p.m.: Up next is Montana Love, who returns after a seventh-round stoppage of Ivan Baranchyk in August on the undercard of Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley. He'll have Carlos Diaz in front of him for his first fight under the Matchroom Boxing umbrella.
9:40 p.m.: Wyatt tried but she simply absorbed punishment from McCaskill, who pounded on her for every second of every round. There wasn't much that McCaskill didn't hit her with and before the seventh round started, it was clear that Wyatt needed to show something. She didn't. McCaskill bumped her with a straight right hand and the referee had seen enough. McCaskill gets the seventh-round TKO and we'll see what's next for the undisputed champion.
9:31 p.m.: Wyatt has been game through 4 rounds but McCaskill is just too sharp, too strong and too much. It's a matter of whether McCaskill finishes off Wyatt or allows her to make it to the scorecards.
9:16 p.m.: Kandi Wyatt gets the opportunity of a lifetime next as she faces Jessica McCaskill for the undisputed women's welterweight championship as a late replacement. Can she capitalize?
8:52 p.m.: We're live from Las Vegas. Two fights down, two fights end inside the distance. Both Marc Castro and Filip Hrgovic wasted little time dispatching their opposition. Hrgovic got rid of Emir Ahmatovic in the third round of a one-sided fight while Castro polished off Ronaldo Solis in the second round. We have time to kill now.
When is Devin Haney vs. JoJo Diaz Jr. tonight?
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 4
- Main card: 8 p.m. ET | 5 p.m. PT
- Main event (approx.): 11:15 p.m. ET | 8:15 p.m. PT
The main card is set to get underway at 8 p.m. ET, with Haney and Diaz expected to make their way to the ring at approximately 11:15 p.m. As always with live fight cards, timing is subject to change depending on the length of the undercard bouts.
How to watch Devin Haney vs. JoJo Diaz Jr. fight
- U.S. & Canada: DAZN
- UK: DAZN
The fight card will be broadcast across the world on DAZN (excluding Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Macedonia).
Devin Haney vs. JoJo Diaz Jr. fight card
- Devin Haney def. Joseph "JoJo" Diaz Jr. via unanimous decision (117-111, 117-111 and 116-112) to retain WBC lightweight title
- Montana Love def. Carlos Diaz via 3rd round TKO (1:22)
- Jessica McCaskill def. Kandi Wyatt via 7th round TKO (:19) to retain undisputed women's welterweight titles (:19)
- Filip Hrgovic def. Emir Ahmatovic via 4th round TKO
- Marc Castro def. Ronaldo Solis via 2nd round TKO