Joel wanted to become world champion, but of course, that didn't happen either. "She'd have beat the s--- out of me," he answers while smiling. They've been married for two years, splitting their time between Mexico, where she's from, and Puerto Rico, where he's from. The type of place that looks as if the things happening there are kept secret. Diaz and Gracia put away the tools used to help their boxers fight. Find him on Twitter: @Andrew_L_John. Theres some freedom from that and there can be a lot of good energy from that.. He trains about 20 professional boxers, and with three of them fighting the next day, tomorrow will be busy. Make of that what you will. Joel Diaz hosts a pre-screening of his documentary at his boxing gym in Indio, CA. Riverside Tamale Fest to Feature Food Competition, Music, Dancing, Felon Convicted of Killing Girlfriend, Fleeing to Vegas with Young Son, Blaze Damages Abandoned Restaurant near Jurupa Valley Animal Shelter, Man Caught with Cache of Super Toxic Illegal Drugs Sentenced, Blaze in Santa Ana River Bottom Quickly Stopped, Felon Suspected in Altercation Outside Motel in Rancho Mirage to Stand Trial, Two Injured When Car Crashes into MoVal Residence, UPDATED: Charges Filed Against Man Suspected in Sexually Motivated Messages with Teen. In two rings beside each other, there are two fights going on at the same time. Thats what Im doing.. And in the cruel world of boxing, as he sits there and his team stands near, they can hear the voice of the man who just beat them. In his first bout, a promoter paid him $400 then filed for bankruptcy as soon as the fight ended. Everybody would win, I would lose," Too says. I want to make history.. Im going to keep that table here forever.. He might see everything, but he can't be everywhere. Joel Diaz Jr. - Boxing News They've sacrificed for all of this. When he got up, he had no idea where he was but his corner worked furiously to get him ready for the final round. "You got to come in like this," he says, as he moves side to side while throwing punches. Barrios got up at the count of 4, he didnt know where he was as he looked around towards the crowd like a kid separated from his family at a theme park, but Barrios turned to the ref at the count of 8 and signaled that he was okay, SAVED BY THE BELL. The pain of losing a child during pregnancy. The building will have bathrooms and locker rooms for men and women, a sauna, a private space for ice baths and two boxing rings. "Rosado, Rosado," other boxers tell him. Last May, Bivol beat Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, a boxer many considered the best in the world. It was a high-crime area, known for drugs and prostitution. That amount shocked him, considering $5,000 was the most he'd been paid until then. What happens when a boxer kills his opponent? Inside the Special Events Center's dressing room, in the Fantasy Springs Casino Resort, a boxer is bleeding. During the fight, Salido made a mockery of the Queensberry rules for which he received no point deductions and only one warning. EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK: "Joel Diaz: A Hard Knock-Life" Documentary by Bethany Mollenkof for ESPN. But by the time he got to high school, he'd won 55 of his next 57 fights along with two national titles and knew exactly what he was born to do. Andrew John covers sports for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Yet, against Barrios, he had proven without a doubt that he possessed the heart of a warrior. Theres still a lot of work to be done, Diaz said, but its amazing the work that weve already put into this. Since Bazooka won his fight, Diaz is happy. When Tim Desert Storm Bradley arrived as a pro in 2004 he had been passed over by various promotion companies who felt he was too small to fight at the super welterweight class he had participated in as an amateur. Diaz, 48, said he plans to open the gym up to the community for a grand opening in September. Flores wins his fight in the first minute. Across the street from that mural, there's an old fire station on the corner of 6th Street and Vine Avenue. As the fists and shoulders of fighters brush by him, it looks as if their violence might spill over. Word was spreading that there was something going on in that desert gym in Indio that was making champions. Joel Diaz Boxing | Indio CA. ET. Antonio Diaz, the younger brother of Joel, works well with the fighters and their combined knowledge gives them insight not often found in many gyms. Not far from an abandoned gas station with a fading sign for cold beer and cheap motels with pools that've been filled in with sand and covered. But also, you can see up close what devotion looks like and learn how to overcome obstacles that would break less hearty souls. And because of that, this place also has a long history of farmworkers fighting for their rights. "Things happened for a reason," he says. We knew that he came like from nothing, no connections, no money, and then after that he had troubles and it wasnt like easy at all for him, says Jorge Newman. "GET UP, I want to meet you guys," a man told Joel and his brother, Too, then aged 11 and 5. Vergil Ortiz Sr., the father of welterweight prospect Vergil Ortiz Jr., said he urged his son to choose Indio because of the desert location. On top of supporting his longtime friend, Congressman Ruiz awarded Coach Diaz a Certificate of Congressional Recognition for all the work he has done providing underprivileged kids in the valley with an outlet like boxing. he shouts at no one and everyone at once. ref: Rudy Battle Alfred Buqwana 110 . KBX Fitness, 82545 Showcase Parkway Suite 107, Indio, CA (2023) "People come to this country for a better opportunity and a better life for their kids and their family, and they're fighting every step of the way to make that happen," Garcia says. he screams inside the 6,995-square-foot gym. I've been here so long, and I sent these guys to pick you up.". Back in April when middleweight titan Gennady GGG Golovkin was seeking an opponent to replace Saul Canelo Alvarez who was facing suspension for performance enhancement drug use, it was the 21-year-old from Tijuana who volunteered his services for a May 5th date in Las Vegas. Seldom are cruiserweight matchups as enticing to watch as this one. Despite having diminished vision, he sees everything, his single functioning eye darting in every direction. Flores is 18 and has boxed since he was 7 years old. To comment on this article at The Fight Forum, CLICK HERE. On Saturday, June 18th, NBC Palm Springs had an exclusive first look at a documentary on the life of local boxing trainer, Joel Diaz. Antonio Diaz & Indio Boxers in L.A. | MyBoxingFans - Boxing News On Saturday, June 18th, NBC Palm Springs had an exclusive first look at a documentary on the life of local boxing trainer, Joel Diaz. Its not getting a large amount of attention in my neighborhood but this unification clash between WBA and IBF cruiserweight titlist Murat Gassiev (26-0, 19 KOs) and WBC and WBO cruiserweight titlist Oleksandr Usyk (14-0, 11 KOs) has historic ramifications tagged all over it. Andrew John is a reporterfor The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Maybe by showing them those fields, that'd help explain why he and their mother left and were apart for so long. Professional boxing trainer Joel Diaz has recently opened his boxing gym in Indio, Calif., on July 23, 2021. desertsun.com Photos: Indio boxing gym of world-renown trainer Joel Diaz nearing completion Recently Diego De La Hoya has emerged as a budding young star who is just about ready to enter the big time. Whenever there was a big fight in the Lone Star State, his son was the favorite to draw the coveted refereeing assignment. Diaz sings again, only stopping to tell Gracia to visit an optometrist. He's talking about where his gym is, on the eastern side of the Coachella Valley. How Indio Boxing Trainer Joel Diaz Helped Dmitry Bivol Secure Victory There's a lump on the back of the right side of his head. Heavy bags, speed bags, weights, chin-up bars and two boxing rings are all used simultaneously by the different boxers. Waiting for his time just like a scorpion in the desert heat. He says he won the fight and wants a rematch. A well-known figure in the Coachella Valley, many have approached Diaz and asked how they can help. Needing a space to traintheir boxers, including professionals and young amateurs, Joel and Antonio moved their operation to KBX Fitness, the North Indio gym of UFC featherweight Cub Swanson and his brother, Steve, also a mixed martial artist. It's Friday and that means it's sparring day for his pros. As he explains it now, a few months after that experience, Joel walked into the boxing gym in downtown Coachella. Led by the Diaz brothers Joel (in the white shorts) and Antonio, the roster of professional boxers can match any other gym in the world in terms of talent. His manager asked me what I thought of his last fight and we agreed, said Diaz of Vargas. Theres no wasting time. His last bout ever was a knockout win over the veteran Jos Luis Montes. The gym is clattering with noise from the various boxers working in the different stations. : Thank you head trainer Joel Diaz of the Indio, Ca. HBO will televise. Hence the watch list, which is designed to call attention to egregious errors in scoring by judges and unacceptable conduct by referees.. No matter what obstacles get in the way, you have to find a way to get through the hard times and keep fighting to overcome those obstacles., CONGRESSMAN RAUL RUIZ AWARDS JOEL DIAZ WITH CONGRESSIONAL HONOR. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2022 Entravision All rights reserved. People want to know who I am, people wanna know how I got to where Im at, Its gonna be right there.. Back to the chaos of the boxing gym where the hungry people fight. The other to keep track of his day. He couldn't risk losing the money or the opportunity, so he waited until after the fight. "You should tell someone," Too told Joel. JOEL DIAZ STANDS on the ring apron while there's chaos all around him. "Even when he's dead, he's still fighting.". Barrios was like a madman pounding Popo with a variety of wild shots, but with exactly one half of one second to go before the bell ending the round, Freitas caught La Hiena with a monster right hand that caused the Hyena to do the South American version of the chicken dance before he went down with his face horribly bloodied. Ironically both Mosley and Diaz were from the Inland Empire and ended up training in the same Big Bear training camp. Facebook; Twitter; Facebook Messenger; Email He was big and tall and had a beard. Now we have water, we have power. At the screening, were friends and family of Joel Diaz, along with important members of the community, like Congressman Raul Ruiz. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com. "Tijuana, linda frontera, cmo te podr olvidar," (or in English, "Tijuana, beautiful border how can I forget you?") "They're putting all their ideas together and creating their dream gym.". Jorge Newman and Eduardo Salazar are from Cancun, Mexico, and first met Diaz while he was training a boxer for a fight in Mexico. The reach for glory finally within their grasp. Neither fighter looked good in their fight in Malaysia but when Pacquiao floored Matthysse several times during the fight, it raised some red flags. Now all I have to do is make it shine. Joel Diaz will be in the opposite corner as his friend Randy Caballero He found his purpose in a strange world where he didn't even speak the language. In the murals around downtown Coachella, like the one showing endless rows of fields along with the words, "Lucha Sin Fin." Although Mattice vs. Hamazaryan was a supporting bout, it aired live on ShoBox. "The Diaz brothers know what it takes to have a wonderful gym," said Brandun Lee, an unbeaten super lightweight (22-0) contender who has trained at the building. he yells at a Mexican boxer, imploring him to attack. It's like a light switch flipped. He says this side of Coachella is where fighters come from, and he swells with pride whenever he sees them on television. Professional boxing trainer Joel Diaz has recently opened his boxing gym in Indio, Calif., on July 23, 2021. I know you from the heart. "It hasn't stopped bleeding," Ervin adds. Complaints of ineptitude, says the WBAA, will be evaluated by a rotating committee of select BWAA members and respected boxing experts. In subsequent years, says the press release, the watch list will be published quarterly in the months of April, August, and December (must be the new math). Get a head start on the mornings top stories. Dedication was never a problem for Joel. Antonio Diaz plans to continue working with kids and says one day he may bring professionals back tothe club, even after his brother moves to the new facility. After a year building his own boxing gym in Indio, doing much of the work by himself, trainer Joel Diaz is close toopening it to the community. This is our home now, said Antonio Diaz. A member of Ring 10, and Ring 4s Boxing Hall of Fame, he was recently cited by Hannibal Boxing as one of three Must-Read boxing writers.

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