By DAVE SKRETTA, AP Sports Writer
Juan Diaz sometimes feels as though he should stand up in the middle of a crowded room and remind everyone who actually won his first fight against Paul Malignaggi.
All the talking that Malignaggi has been doing since August, when Diaz won a close unanimous decision in his hometown of Houston, is starting to make some people forget that the Baby Bull was the one whose arm was raised after 12 thrilling rounds.
“It doesn’t matter whether you win by a point or by 10 points, a win is a win,” Diaz said. “He did so much talking that people believed him, he did so much talking.”
Yes, Malignaggi did plenty of talking—so much that he landed an immediate rematch. The two light welterweights will meet again on Saturday at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago.
“He can talk a lot, he can talk a good game, but when it comes down to it, he really doesn’t like to fight,” Diaz said. “He likes to punch and move, punch and move. He doesn’t like to get hit, he avoids any type of confrontation. That’s his whole strategy, to talk a lot and try to win the fight without getting hit.”
Diaz said he wants to provide some closure to the first fight, which was thrown into controversy when the scorecards were read. Two judges had it 115-113 and 116-112 for Diaz, reasonable scores for a bout in which there were several close rounds.The third score, 118-110, prompted Malignaggi to embark on a tirade.
“That one scorecard was what made the rematch possible because it was so out of line, so out of whack,” said Malignaggi, who was still talking about the wide scorecard at a news conference on Thursday.
“I got what I expected from Juan the first time,” the former 140-pound (63 1/2 -kilogram) titleholder said. “He’s an aggressive fighter, and he steals rounds because of those little flurries he throws. It’s a smart tactic when you win rounds doing it that way.”
Malignaggi (26-3) prides himself on being an active fighter, but he doesn’t have much pop, winning only five times by knockout. Even so, the “Magic Man” said he’s not going to change his approach in an attempt to keep three judges seated ringside from deciding another outcome.
“I’m more active than all my opponents, being active is not really the issue. If I fight my fight, I don’t have anything to worry about,” he said.
Even though Diaz (35-2, 17 KOs) is coming off a win, he still believes he’s trying to regain momentum from a pair of tough losses in his last four fights.
The former unified lightweight titleholder dropped a split decision to Nate Campbell in Cancun early last year. After winning a split decision over Michael Katsidis, Ortiz went toe-to-toe with Juan Manuel Marquez until he was stopped in the ninth round.
“A lot of people questioned this last fight, a lot of people,” said Diaz promoter Oscar De La Hoya. “He’s a fighter, and whoever we put in front of him, he’s going to fight.”
