Jo Jo Diaz said he would be ready to fight Ryan Garcia but doubted his rival’s willingness to take big fights.
Diaz impressed in his most recent fight against Devin Haney and faces an as-yet-unconfirmed rival this July in his next outing as he makes his name known in the lightweight division.
Garcia fought against Emmanuel Tagoe live on DAZN and will want to stay active after 15 months out of the ring, and while he has been linked with Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis, it is fair to say that Diaz might offer a more gradual step up in quality, despite his own talents.
Diaz was in attendance for the Garcia vs. Tagoe fight on Saturday for DAZN, and after the fight was asked how he felt about taking on the 23-year-old contender. While he said he would be ready to make the fight, he cast doubt on Garcia’s mettle.
“Absolutely, I’m the type of guy who will never dodge or duck anybody and if Ryan wants to sign the contract and I sign the contract then we can get it going,” he began.
“But it's gonna be hard for myself and big fighters and dogs at the 135 lb division to get in the ring with a guy like Ryan Garcia. I feel like Garcia don’t have that heart to be in the ring with the big dogs.”