William Zepeda just never gave Joseph Diaz Jr. a chance.
The Mexican slugger pounded his way to unanimous decision over the former 130-pound titleholder in a 12-round 135-pound fight Saturday night at Pechanga Arena in San Diego, a break-through victory for Zepeda.
The official scores were 119-109, 119-109 and 118-110, which was more one-sided than Diaz’s loss to undisputed champion Devin Haney in December.
Zepeda (27-0, 23 KOs) looked superhuman, overwhelming Diaz (32-3-1, 15 KOs) with relentless, punishing pressure from the opening bell to the end of the fight.
Diaz was durable and had some good moments — including a big shot that hurt Zepeda in the sixth round — but he couldn’t keep pace with a punching machine like Zepeda.
Zepeda was ranked by three of the four major sanctioning bodies going into the fight. He’s sure to climb the lists after his strong performance.
“There were a lot of comments on social media that thought [Diaz] was my test,” Zepeda said afterward, according to RingTV.com. “I think I passed the rest with excellence. I’m ready for the best at 135 pounds.”
Diaz, a former U.S. Olympian, might be at a crossroads. He’s 1-2-1 in his last four fights.