Joseph Diaz's first defense of his IBF junior lightweight title now has a location.
Golden Boy Promotions, Diaz's promotional team, announced Diaz vs. mandatory challenger Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov would take place at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, Calif. The card can be seen exclusively worldwide in over 200 countries on DAZN.
"Golden Boy's first journey to Fantasy Springs in 2021 picks up right where we left off— with an action-packed card from top to bottom," said Oscar De La Hoya, chairman and CEO of Golden Boy.
The show's co-main event will feature Patrick Teixeira defending the WBO junior middleweight championship against Brian Castano. De La Hoya also announced two new bouts as Ronny Rios (32-3, 16 KOs) and Oscar "El Jaguar" Negrete (19-2-2, 7 KOs) face off in a super bantamweight battle while Jason Quigley (18-1, 14 KOs) and Shane Mosley Jr. (16-3, 9 KOs) fight in middleweight action.
"A true crossroads fight will see Jason Quigley and Shane Mosley Jr. leaving it all in the ring to regain contender status in the middleweight division," De La Hoya said. "And after upsetting my cousin Diego De La Hoya, Ronny Rios will look to keep it rolling against an always-tough customer in Oscar Negrete, whose only two losses have come to a world champion."
Diaz (31-1, 15 KOs) looks to take care of business after beating Tevin Farmer to capture his first major world title in January 2020.
"Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov is a very good fighter who is highly ranked throughout the world," Diaz said in a DAZN press release. "I know he's been aching for a world title shot, but I'm ready to go out there and showcase that I'm willing to fight the best and defend my title with whoever wants to step in that ring with me. I'm the hungriest I've ever been, and there is nothing that he brings to the table that can affect me."
Rakhimov (15-0, 12 KOs) cannot wait for the opportunity to compete for a world title and vows to make the most of his chance at gold.
"I've been waiting for this chance for a long time," Rakhimov said. "Thank you for this opportunity to my team. My training camp is long one but very good. I will do my best to win this fight. I came here for the victory!"