From the Mountain Province to the Windy City

Pacquiao's foe David Diaz trains with Fil-Am from Mountain Province

WBC Lightweight boxing champion David Diaz during workout.

David's sparring partner: Diamond Gut-oman Baier, a 31-year old native of Mountain Province.

Text, Photos and Video by Ted Regencia PINOY Newsmagazine

Chicago, IL -- As he prepares for his biggest fight against the Philippines' Manny Pacquiao on June 28, lightweight champion David Diaz now spars with a Filipino-American southpaw.

Diaz has enlisted the help of Diamond Gut-oman Baier, a 31-year old native of Bontoc, Mountain Province, as one of his three sparring partners, all lefties.

Diamond, as he is popularly known in Chicago's boxing community, is an amateur boxer and trains with the Chicago Boxing Club. He is also an entrepreneur and long-time resident of the Chicago's South Side. At the age of 10, Diamond moved to Chicago after he was adopted by his aunt. He took his last name Baier, from his German-American uncle.

"I hope he doesn't get in trouble," Diaz jokingly quipped after revealing Diamond's name. "We didn't just get him because he's Filipino. We got him because his style is similar to Manny's. He is fast, he's pretty strong and he's from around the area," Diaz said.

On Thursday, June 19 as Diaz held court with the Chicago media, Diamond kept a low-profile staying at the back of the Jabb Boxing Gym, where the press conference took place.

David Diaz is being interviewed by a Chicago journalist.

In an exclusive interview with this reporter, Diamond said that he has been boxing for six years. In 2004, he met David through his coach, who encouraged him to watch the Olympian shadow-box.

"I learned a lot from David. It's a small world, years later, here I am helping him out for his championship fight," Diamond said in a soft-spoken voice that belies his hard-hitting punches.

"This is going to be a great fight," Diamond predicted of the match between the two boxing champions, Diaz and Pacquiao. "For all the boxing fans out there, I hope they'll get a chance to see it."

He also offered some analysis about the sports, particularly on the advantages of lefty boxers like him, saying that "they are just awkward to fight." "Most people who are right-handed usually fight right-handed fighters. So, when you fight someone who is left-handed, you're thrown-off just because of all the angles."

What makes the fight between Diaz and Pacquiao interesting is that both are lefties, Diamond pointed out. "This will be a great fight. I can't wait to see it."

While Diamond was not picked by virtue of his birth as a Filipino, he said he is proud of his Mountain Province ancestry.

"I'm always gonna be Filipino. Absolutely" Diamond said adding that he still loves to eat adobo, pancit and lumpia. Last year, he returned to the Philippines to attend the funeral of his mother, and will visit anew in September.

Diaz's two other sparring partners are Oscar Leon of Colombia and Ivan Popcea of Mexico. He is being trained by Bob Arum and promoted by Top Rank.

Just a little more than a week before his fight at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Diaz said as of June 18, he weighs 137 lbs., two pounds above the lightweight division that he is fighting.

Asked whether there's still some part of his training that he needs to work on, Diaz said that "like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, it's all coming together." "What we need is conditioning, so we need to work on that conditioning until the couple of days before the fight. And then from there, see what happens."

As to his psychological readiness, the Chicago-born pugilist said that "he doesn't think about it too much." "I just go with the flow and see where it takes me. If the day of the fight, I have to do something, then I'll do it. Other than that, just go forward man."

David Diaz with his father, Anselmo a native of Mexico. David is the youngest of nine children.

David Diaz: Chicago Cubs' "Pitcher for a Day"

Text, Photos and Video by Ted Regencia

Chicago, IL -- If only for a few hours, boxing was not the center of his attention, as WBC lightweight titleholder David Diaz watched his favorite baseball team, the Chicago Cubs play at the historic Wrigley Field on Tuesday, June 10.

Not only did he watch the game, he threw the ceremonial pitch, an honor reserved for celebrities and presidents. As the announcer called Diaz to the mound, a crowd of more than 40,000 cheered the hometown's top boxing champion.

GMA television was the only Filipino media company allowed at Wrigley Field to cover Diaz.

"I'm going to try and see if I can make it to the plate. If in fact I can make it to the plate, I'd be happy," Diaz said just before the start of the game.

And in what could be a good sign for Diaz, the Cubs delivered the necessary "hooks and jabs" to beat the visiting Atlanta Braves, 10-5.

The Chicago pugilist is only a few days removed from his biggest bout, and it looks like he has also ramped up his training.

"It's great. It's doing good. We are in good condition. We're doing already pretty good rounds and working hard to try to stay in good shape," Diaz said. As part of his training he runs 6 miles near his Northwest Side home.

He said he is ready to keep his title from being snatched by famed Filipino fighter, Manny Pacquiao, who now holds three world titles.

"I think [our chance] is great. I'm gonna be fighting a smart fight, an intelligent fight. I'll try to out-point him and beat him. Let's see what we can do," Diaz said.

"Train hard buddy, because we are gonna have a good time," Diaz said, directly addressing Pacquiao.

Diaz, however, hesitated to predict the possibility of him knocking out Pacquiao, who is also a lefty.

"I don't know if I can knock him out. But I feel comfortable and confident that I will do a good fight," Diaz said.

My dad, my hero
As Diaz talked about his upcoming fight, he quickly pivoted the discussion towards the role of his parents in his career.

"My dad is my hero. He didn't even go to kindergarten, didn't finish first grade and he was still there able to support and provide a roof for his kids. If he can do that, I can do anything as well," Diaz said. "I am very proud of my mom and my dad. I'm fortunate to be their son," he added.

Diaz's father, Anselmo is from the state of Guerrero in Mexico. He came to the US in the 1950s and toiling in the fields of Sacramento, California. He later moved to Chicago and later had to opportunity to work for R.S. Owens, maker of Oscar statues for the Academy Awards.

Meanwhile, Basilisa, David's mother is from Acatlan, another remote part of Mexico. Not too long ago, his mother faced some health-related problems. For five years, she was on dialysis until she finally got a kidney transplant. She also suffered a heart attack after the transplant, complicating further the challenges Diaz had to face. As the youngest of nine children, the responsibility fell on him to take care of his ailing mother.

Asked how they feel about his upcoming fight, David said that both his parents "are comfortable. They feel happy. They know the type, the line of work I am in, so we got to roll with it."