In the second fight on the card, another one of his fighters, Grant Flores Jr., is warming up for his second career fight by stretching and jumping around. This used to be a junkyard. The boxer is one of several Eastern European and Central Asian boxers -- from Uzbekistan and Russia mostly -- who train here. Until then, hes going to enjoy living his dream in the space that he created. Just about everything planted here came to life: watermelon, grapefruits, dates, squash, radish and cabbage, to name a few. For six days, festival goers from across the country, and world, will pack into the 250 acres of the Empire Polo Club's immaculate green fields. Elite boxers began showing up such as Terence Crawford, Omar Figueroa, Lucas Matthysse and others. "It's a good way to stay focused on training," Bivol said of using Joel's gym. That side is where most of the Coachella Valley's tourist industry is centered. As Marquez was being examined by the ring doctor, Cole informed Marquez that he was ahead on the scorecards, volunteering this information while holding his hand over his HBO wireless mike. "The gallo is the bravest animal in the world," Diaz answers when I ask him why the gamecock is in the middle of his gym's logo. Joel Diaz Boxing Academy, Monroe St, Indio, CA, Health Clubs & Gyms Maybe that would help show how much they sacrificed. JoJo Diaz's boxing approach altered by becoming a dad - The Desert Sun EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK: "Joel Diaz: A Hard Knock-Life" Documentary by Watch Mercito Gesta vs Joel Diaz Jr. Live Stream Fight on - Now Boxing Find him on Twitter: @Andrew_L_John. 234: Once-in-a-Generation Mega Fight: Tank Davis vs King Ry Garcia, Cordina-Rakhimov Might Steal the Show this Saturday, Avila Perspective, Chap. In round eight, another accidental head butt widened and deepened the gash. But thats boxing. Ive never won any kind of award before in my life, said Munguia at the Westside Boxing Club in the western portion of Los Angeles. 7 Questions With Joel Diaz - NY FIGHTS One entire section was filled by Russian supporters and Gassiev did not disappoint in winning by stoppage that night. In Joel Diaz gym Indio CA | esnews ESNEWS 749K subscribers. He became a professional boxer. Its helped everything come together.. "You got to come in like this," he says, as he moves side to side while throwing punches. And though the festival is on the east side, about four miles from Joel's gym, most of the tourists will stay on the west side of Coachella Valley. Boxers walk around trying to catch a breath and get a drink for their burning throat. They've sacrificed for all of this. They both scored the fight 76-75 for Mattice, enabling the Ohio fighter to keep his undefeated record intact via a split decision. "It's fine," he says. People like 2020 Olympic gold medal winner Bakhodir Jalolov and former welterweight champion (and soon to be Hall of Famer) Timothy Bradley Jr., to name a few. They're kids with parents who are agricultural, construction or service workers. Photos: Boxing trainer Joel Daz to open new gym in Indio - The Desert Sun a voice among the many in the dressing room yells. These later wins, though against lower level opposition, somewhat softened the memories of the Corrales and Diaz fights, both of which this writer attended at the Foxwoods Resort in Mashantucket, Connecticut. Andrew John is a reporterfor The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Mercito Gesta vs Joel Diaz Jr at Fantasy Springs Casino, Indio Filipino boxer Mercito 'No Mercy' Gesta will take on twice beaten Joel Diaz Jr in a 10 round Lightweight bout. 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. Daz, along with two of his brothers, Joel and Julio, are former professional boxers who fought for world titles after being raised in Coachella. Recently Diego De La Hoya has emerged as a budding young star who is just about ready to enter the big time. That's where Diaz and his brother Antonio (or Too, as he's commonly called) trained. "I accidentally cut Tito," Gracia tells him as Diaz hands over the small dark bottle with a yellow label. Last May, Bivol beat Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, a boxer many considered the best in the world. He's looking at a boxer's pinkie to see how badly it's hurt. He was the first and only inductee into the inaugural class of the Texas Boxing Hall of Fame, an organization founded by El Paso promoter Lester Bedford in 2015. Nothing escapes Joel Diaz who occasionally glances around the gym and notices Diego De La Hoya, the younger cousin of boxing great Oscar De La Hoya. The two met in 2018, at a boxing convention in Panama. he sings. Joel Diaz Jr. gets boxing bug again - The Desert Sun Maybe by showing them those fields, that'd help explain why he and their mother left and were apart for so long. When Acelino Freitas turned professional in 1995, he streaked from the gate with 29 straight KOs, one of the longest knockout win streaks in boxing history. He's showing fighters how to pivot their feet to maximize their leverage. As the fists and shoulders of fighters brush by him, it looks as if their violence might spill over. Mucio has a fight sometime in June or July, so in a few weeks, they'll return to train again in the Coachella Valley. Since he speaks little English, around the gym he's congratulated on the opportunity to avenge the sole loss of his career. HBO will televise. Im going to put in the work. And I did.. he screams inside the 6,995-square-foot gym. He served 27 months and never fought again, retiring with a record of 50-4-1. But I was like, Wait, I have a building. Even the fancy gas stations get their share of the dangerous little creatures. Wherever it is, they'll rest and enjoy the things they've denied themselves for months. He's on the main ring, next to the banner with his logo on it, a gamecock wearing boxing gloves, circled by the gym's name: Joel Diaz Training Camp. Diaz shouts between sneaking looks at two clocks. Hed sit, often by himself, in the early stages of the project drawing designs from his ideas for the space. Joel Diaz worked for a while with Lee Espinoza at the Coachella Boxing Club before opening up his own gym. Diaz sings again, only stopping to tell Gracia to visit an optometrist. Joel and Antonio began telling people about the project and many began offering to help for free. The unification fight takes place in Moscow, Russia and will be streamed via Klowd TV at 12 p.m. PT/ 3 p.m. "The f---ing check bounced," Joel still remembers. Although Mattice vs. Hamazaryan was a supporting bout, it aired live on ShoBox. Recently former WBC super featherweight champion Francisco El Bandido Vargas has become part of the team and is preparing for a showdown against Englands Stephen Smith at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas on Dec. 9. Monroe St Indio CA 92201. Diaz, 47, said he expects the new gym to open in March. Too knew about the problem because he'd been Joel's sparring partner and saw how his brother couldn't see the left hook. (Marquez elected to continue and stopped Jaca in the next round.). And right now, Diaz is sitting behind the ring's red corner, giving instructions to Leonardo Sanchez, a young southpaw, also from the Coachella Valley, who everyone calls Bazooka. Everything happens for a reason.. "Tengo que ir?" Flores is 18 and has boxed since he was 7 years old. His neighbor owns Indian Wells Glass and Mirror and provided mirrors for the gym. "You should tell someone," Too told Joel. Shows. One to keep track of rounds. The doctor looks at Acosta's hand as he hears the story. On Saturday, June 18th, NBC Palm Springs had an exclusive first look at a documentary on the life of local boxing trainer, Joel 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. JOEL DIAZ STANDS on the ring apron while there's chaos all around him. Hes still working to complete the entryway and his office inside the gym, off Indio Boulevard, but the rest of the 6,250-square foot space has been transformed from a gutted building to a gym that will soon host current and future world champions. His gravelly voice, built for teaching people how to fight, makes you wonder whether he has found peace at 50 years old, or whether he's too busy to give much thought to what he lost more than a half-life ago. Decades ago, when this part of Coachella, the city -- right next to Indio -- looked abandoned, the building housed a crumbling boxing gym. They also want to provide school supplies for less-fortunate families at the start of the school year and turkeys at Thanksgiving. He won. The small Palm Springs Airport will get so crowded it'll be difficult to walk through. Ukraines Usyk, 31, made his American debut in late 2016 on a Golden Boy Promotions card that staged boxing great Bernard Hopkins final prizefight. It reminded me of George Foremans obliteration of Joe Frazier back in the 1970s. With nothing else to do, Diaz stops singing and helps Flores warm up. Indio Councilman Glenn Miller volunteered his help. To sacrifice, doing backbreaking work, while being apart from the ones they loved. "It's just a nick.". Acosta laughs along. Cole was the third man in the ring for the Nov. 25, 2006 bout in Hildalgo, Texas, between Juan Manuel Marquez and Jimrex Jaca. He says he won the fight and wants a rematch. So this former champ moved it out to the desert, Riverside County reports 3,901 additional coronavirus cases, 53 new deaths Wednesday, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. 2,187 likes. Inside the Special Events Center's dressing room, in the Fantasy Springs Casino Resort, a boxer is bleeding. They then cleared out five trailers full of junk and reframed the space, secured the roof and began bringing new material. Contreras and Sinnett, residents of Omaha, were singled out for their scorecards in the match between lightweights Thomas Mattice and Zhora Hamazaryan, an eight round contest staged at the WinnaVegas Casino in Sloan, Iowa on July 20. Otherwise any future fights for the Philippine great will not be forthcoming. The day after Diaz is gone, Mucio and Acosta will leave too. Lead announcer Barry Tompkins went further, calling it the worst decision he has seen in his 40 years of covering the sport. "Vamos Tito!" So he did what his brother did, he even won a minor world title. Since they understood the discipline and sacrifices required to make a living from fighting, they became fast friends. While the Coachella Valley is a perfect winter escape for those with money, it's also home to some of the country's most fertile lands. "When I got here, I started sparring with men," she says. event bout wiki. ref: Rudy Battle Alfred Buqwana 110 . Gracia just raises his eyebrows and gives the slight shrug of "I don't know.". 11/10/2019 We always have a lot of things going on, said Joel Diaz. I want to be a great champion, said Munguia. EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK: "Joel Diaz: A Hard Knock-Life" Documentary by Once a highly touted prospect he states his biggest loss was to Regis Prograis in 2017 when he fought the soon to be light welterweight world champion and was stopped in the second round. Honestly, it makes me happy because at one point, you know, life is short. Neither fighter looked good in their fight in Malaysia but when Pacquiao floored Matthysse several times during the fight, it raised some red flags. Back then, to raise funds for travel, Lee sold raffle tickets where the prizes were pigs and cows and TVs. When WBA/WBO super featherweight champion Acelino Popo Freitas met Jorge Rodrigo Il Hiena Barrios in Miami on August 8, 2003, there was more on the line than just the titles. Car share apps charge $40 for a two-minute ride to the festival grounds. "The doctor says if you want to go to the hospital, they can take you," a member of the team translates for Acosta. The rest is history. What time is the Joel Diaz Jr vs. Mercito Gesta fight tonight Everything that was originally in the building was taken out to the trash except for a table and chair that he kept as a reminder. He lost his first four amateur fights. Now all I have to do is make it shine. I barely slept for a year while I was working on this, said Diaz, who has wonworld titleswith 13 differentboxers during his two decades as a trainer. "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. Though Joel's brother, Antonio, remains employed by the Indio Boys & Girls Club and works with about 20 kids now that the facility has re-opened, an era of professional boxing at the club came to a close whereboxing history runs deep. When Mucio fights and Acosta watches, he feels the same. He built his camp from the ground up, starting with a twice-burned-down building he bought ten years ago for $230,000 dollars. Palmdale's Joel Diaz, Jr. (26-2, 22 KOs) and San Diego's Mercito "No Mercy" Gesta (32-3-3, 17 KOs) hosted a media workout today ahead of their 10-round lightweight fight on Thursday, April . I know you from the heart. Motivated because he'd discovered what he was good at, even if, when he first started, he'd come home with his shirt full of blood. Arely is Acosta's wife. Joel has given them his phone number and theyve called him whenever they notice any suspicious activity at the building. More than anything, he looks relieved. But Cole insisted that the match continue and then, after another knockdown that he ruled a slip, let it continue for another 35 seconds before Velascos corner mercifully threw in the towel. Work! Health Clubs & Gyms. The festival is part of the valley's annual $7.5 billion tourist industry that attracts more than 13 million people a year. "You're going to lose your eye," the doctor warned. ON A THURSDAY night in early April, when the valley's mornings and evenings are still cool, there's a growing tension in the last place where Diaz fought as a professional. Im excited to give this building life, Diaz added. Andrew John covers sports for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. That night the cruiserweight southpaw Usyk bored audiences with his slap happy style until lowering the boom on South Africas Thabiso Mchunu in round nine at the Inglewood Forum. But it's just not the reality of the working families.". Instructions are yelled in four languages; English, Spanish, Uzbek and Russian. His job was irrigation. That's how state Assembly Member Eduardo Garcia describes the contrasts within Coachella Valley, part of the district he represents. Despite having diminished vision, he sees everything, his single functioning eye darting in every direction. He's wrapping hands and tying gloves. One of those guys is Bek The Bully, who'll rematch against Gabe Rosado on April 22. Until last year, Joel Diaz hadnt given much thought to building his own boxing gym. The best known is Dmitry Bivol. Diaz teamed up with Yildirim (21-2 12 KOs) late in October 2019 but due to . Way too many distractions. Team Diaz is a big part of the Coachella Valley boxing community. Diaz knows it was an accident. He would fight one more time before retiring as a fighter and continuing as a trainer. Boxing Techniques; Boxing Gym; Latest Fight Replays. Sometimes things happen for a reason, Diaz said on a weekday in early January, inside a gutted 6,250-square-foot building on Indio Blvd. "No, it's OK," Gracia says, trying to keep the doctor away. In January 2010 he was involved in a hit and runaccident in which a 20-year-old pregnant woman was killed. It's the old gym that's now a restaurant, the place where every day he and his fighters swept away plaster and pieces of concrete that fell from the walls. That gave Diaz a dateto get an abandoned building he owned, whichhad been damaged by a fire, ready to open to his boxing clientele. In his rationale for calling out Cole, BWAA prexy Joseph Santoliquito leaned heavily on Thomas Hausers critique of Coles performance in The Sweet Science. Mercito Gesta vs Joel Diaz Jr Full Fight Replay | Boxing Video Indio boxing gym of world-renown trainer Joel Diaz nearing completion 1996-10-19: Phillip Holiday: 28 0 0: Wembley Indoor Arena, Johannesburg L-UD. They would be his only defeats in 43 pro bouts. From all the rage he'd pass out in his car during the middle of night. This was a roughhousing 39-1-1 Argentinian fighting an equally tough 33-0 Brazilian. I've been here so long, and I sent these guys to pick you up.". In the murals around downtown Coachella, like the one showing endless rows of fields along with the words, "Lucha Sin Fin." Located about 128 miles east of Los Angeles and 95 miles north of the Mexican border, the Indio Boys and Girls club gym is roughly in the middle of nowhere unless you like golf. That's what ultimately led him to politics, becoming Coachella's first elected mayor in 2006. he yells at a Mexican boxer, imploring him to attack. He hopes the facility, which he wants to name Indio Athletic & Youth Center, will one day be a part of his legacy in the valley. Hes almost there, said Joel Diaz. The man hugged them tight then picked them up. This is going to be a popular place for boxers to come and have training camp and be a part of that.. And because he doesn't treat her any different than any of his other fighters. While wrapping his hands, Oscar Gracia, who helps train fighters at Diaz's gym, accidentally cut Angel "Tito" Acosta, their boxer on the main event. The reach for glory finally within their grasp. Trainer extraordinaire Joel Diaz looks on as two boxers engage at his world-renowned gym in Indio, California. He's worked with his younger brothers, Antonio and Julio, as they captured world titles. Women's boxing divisional rankings: Ryan shakes up welterweight division after impressive win, Arrest warrant issued for Nate Diaz after brawl, Sources: Smith-Eubank rematch set for June 17, Gervonta Davis says he's the face of boxing and he's right, Inside fight week for a boxer and his trainer: A miner's vest, a bean dip can and plenty of fruit salad, Bivol no longer an afterthought after beating Canelo -- and lots more superfights are ahead, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. He doesn't go. And although Joel has long been considered one of boxing's best trainers, being part of Bivol's team, and Bivol beating Canelo, who hadn't lost in nine years, made people take further notice of what was happening in this boxing gym out in the desert. And, like Manny, he did and he also pursued a career in politics. "GET UP, I want to meet you guys," a man told Joel and his brother, Too, then aged 11 and 5. "Every time I went to a show or to a tournament, Lee would take five, six of us. Thirsty for liquid, the burning desert absorbed each drop of blood. "They come from nothing," Diaz says. Sincetheir typically rigorous training schedule has been a little slower over the last year because of how the pandemic has reduced the number of fights in the sport, the Diaz brothers have had time to spend preparing the new gym, doing much of the work themselves. Indio District Office. Joel was close to delivering on the promise he made to his mother, who didn't want him fighting. The documentary is co-produced by Joel Diaz, his son, Joel Diaz Jr., along with former UFC fighter & Coachella Valley native, Cub Swanson and his brother, Steve Swanson. If you enjoy honest and heartfelt talk about life and boxing then read on, you won't be disappointed. People want to know who I am, people wanna know how I got to where Im at, Its gonna be right there.. Boxing Home Schedule Champions Divisional Rankings P4P Historic Bouts Tickets It was a high-crime area, known for drugs and prostitution. Jorge Newman and Eduardo Salazar are from Cancun, Mexico, and first met Diaz while he was training a boxer for a fight in Mexico. Until then the Diaz boys had been raised by their grandparents. Forty-five seconds into round eight, after being knocked down for a third time, Velasco spit out his mouthpiece and indicated to Cole that he was finished. Another offered to pay for all the new matting going on top of the concrete floors. With the boys gathered around me, I want to find out what they admire most about their trainer and pro fighter. Since Bazooka won his fight, Diaz is happy. Directions Advertisement. Not all prizefighters can adapt to the remoteness and solitude and end up moving on to urban locations like Jessie Magdaleno did recently. He put away every trophy, plaque and medal he earned. Social media influencers will be there too, charging thousands of dollars for a single post. 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. How a gym in California's Coachella Valley became an international Right now we have Maricela Cornejo and Vergil Ortiz getting ready to fight in Cancun, Mexico on Nov. 16.. Joel's retina was almost entirely detached. The Diaz coaching staff suddenly became world famous too and their gym began filling up with more boxers from not just the Coachella Valley region but from other parts of the country as well. Trainer Joel Diaz says his work with new charge Avni Yildirim will shock the world when he takes on WBC/WBA super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens in Florida on Saturday February 27, live worldwide on DAZN (except Mexico). I was a little upset when they told us we had to leave the Boys & Girls Club. Hes comfortable. "Nobody pushed me, I pushed myself," he says, remembering how he'd wake up to run hours before school. Another boxer training with them, world super bantamweight champion Murodjon Akhmadaliev, will defend his two titles in March. "Even when he's dead, he's still fighting.". Not just them, but everyone here. Diaz believes this building will be the cherry on top of a great career in boxing. 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. The building will have bathrooms and locker rooms for men and women, a sauna, a private space for ice baths and two boxing rings. But Im really excited for (Joel and Antonio) to get their own place and to do it the way they want to do it. Fighters who, for a variety of reasons, reached their level here, among the desert's drab colors, instead of the bright lights of places like Los Angeles, Las Vegas and New York. 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. "Was a bad area.". Diaz, 48, said he plans to open the gym up to the community for a grand opening in September. Its isolation eliminates distractions. Diaz, the eldest brother in a boxing family that produced two world champions in brothers. Luckily, a new smaller promotion company had just started in the Inland Empire called Thompson Boxing Promotions. Once they learned about how Diaz built his life in America as a Mexican immigrant, they wanted to know more. Work!" "Things happened for a reason," he says. Hes poured his blood sweat and tears, he says, into the project knowing that he was on a deadline. ET. Diaz is back in the dressing room and back to joking with Gracia. In this age of PEDs there was no mention of testing for the Pacquiao/Matthysse fight. The first time I ever saw Russias 24-year-old Gassiev was three years ago when he made his American debut at the Quiet Cannon in Montebello. The elder Cole, now 87 years old, served 21 years as head of the Texas Department of Combat Sports Regulation before stepping down on April 30, 2014. "One minute!" Diaz Jr. (26-2, 22 KOs) is 30 years old and still has dreams of becoming a world champion and won't let two losses detract him from his dream. We had been there 18 years, JoelDiaz said. Bethany Mollenkof for ESPN. Between rounds, Diaz keeps teaching. The Swanson brothers were trained by Diaz Training Camp and make several cameos in the documentary. On October 19, 1996, Joel lost a twelve-round decision to undefeated IBF lightweight champion Philip Holiday in Wembley Indoor Arena, Johannesburg. He sings a Chalino Snchez song called "Recordando A Armando" that was playing earlier and must have gotten stuck in his head. The sense of urgency every boxer lives with was replaced by uncertainty. Fifty years ago here, around the time when a farmworker's average life expectancy was 49 years old, the Coachella Grape Strike's picket lines turned violent. Joel is on Twitter @JoelDiazBoxing and Instagram @coachjoeldiaz. To comment on this article at The Fight Forum, CLICK HERE. And because there was nothing left to do, they all exit the ring and return behind the thick black curtain. Popo had grown old. Boxing pound-for-pound rankings: Did Gervonta Davis make the top 10? Coles agency is purportedly in the top two nationally in writing these policies. As soon as the doctor says all's well, everyone's able to joke. Joel Diaz Boxing, Indio, California. But here my son can just focus on boxing and only boxing and sharpen his skills.. From an administrative standpoint, boxing in Texas during the reign of Dickie Cole was frequently described in terms befitting a banana republic. The last time Pacquiao knocked out a welterweight was in 2009 against Miguel Cotto in Las Vegas. The uncertainty of changing trainers that far into their careers. THE FOLLOWING AFTERNOON Diaz leaves for San Antonio where he'll join his brother. And if all that weren't enough, there's always someone calling his phone. Eduardo Salazar hopes that those who watch this documentary are inspired to better their lives, even when times are tough, just like Joel Diaz has done.

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