Our pick last week came from the matchup between unbeaten Jesse Hart (20-0, 16 KOs) and gatekeeper Dashon Johnson (19-19-3, 6 KOs). The main event bout took place Friday at the 2300 Arena, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The bout was scheduled for 10 rounds with the WBO NABO & USBA Super middleweight titles on the line. The show was promoted by J Russell Peltz (Peltz Boxing Promotions, Inc.), Brittany Rogers (Bam Boxing), Bob Arum (Top Rank), and Joe Hand (Joe Hand Promotions).
Hart was the favorite entering the fight and fighting in front of his hometown fans. Johnson was expected to be Hart’s toughest test and this indeed he was. The first half of the fight saw Hart pretty much in control of the action. The second half was a totally different story. Johnson rocked Hart on more than a few occasions. In the 10th and final round Johnson dropped Hart to the canvas. Hart beat the count and survived the round. In the end all of the judges had Hart winning the decision. We were winners as well as we had Hart as our pick of the week. .
Our pick this week comes from the fight between 2012 U.S. Olympian and current NABF featherweight champion Joseph “JoJo” Diaz (19-0, 11 KOs) of South El Monte, California, will take the next step in his career when he faces former world title challenger Jayson Velez (23-1-1, 16 KOs) of Puerto Rico. The bout will be on the HBO televised undercard this Saturday from the at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California The main event will be local unbeaten favorite and former world champion unbeaten Andre Ward (28-0, 15 KOs) vs Sullivan Barrera(17-0, 12 KOs).
This is a big opportunity for both fighter with it being broadcast live on HBO. Velez has had an opportunity to fight for the crown coming up short with a draw decision. A win over the unbeaten Diaz could put him right back in the world title mix. Diaz is looking to get into the world title picture himself and a win over Velez certainly can help those chances. Velez seems to have tailed off a bit since his world title fight where Diaz seems to be getting better each fight. We are taking Diaz for our pick of the week.
Disclaimer: Boxing360’s Pick of the week is strictly for entertainment purposes only
