Diego Pacheco Knocks Out Maciej Sulecki In Sixth Round, Eyes Top Contenders At 168

There is always something about being the first.

Diego Pacheco can proudly pound his chest after he became the first to knock out former title challenger Maciej Sulecki. A perfectly placed left hook to the body produced the knockout at 0:54 of round six Saturday at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California.

“It was hard to find that place to land it,” Pacheco told DAZN’s Chris Mannix after the fight. “Once I did, I knew it was over.”

Pacheco (22-0, 18 knockouts) was determined to resume his knockout ways after he went the distance in his last fight. Shawn McCalman provided some interesting looks but seemed more content to extend Pacheco rounds than fight to win. Pacheco settled for a unanimous decision in his first career fight to go ten rounds.

Style-wise, this was a far more fan-friendly matchup on paper and in reality. It was the perfect fit for Pacheco’s second headliner in his home Los Angeles area.

Poland’s Sulecki fought as advertised and enjoyed a strong opening round. Pacheco’s defense is perhaps the one chink in his 23-year-old armor, though that is where an experienced corner intervenes. Head trainer Jose Benavidez Sr. reminded his young charge to double up on his jab and keep his left whenever Sulecki came over the top with his right.

The advice was expertly heeded by Pacheco, who showed poise as he methodically set up his eventual knockout.

“I could tell after the third and fourth round, he was slowing down,” observed Pacheco. “Sulecki is a hell of a fighter. He came to fight, he came to win.

“But he never ran into anything like this before. It’s the DP show.”

The Diego Pacheco show was firing on all cylinders late in the fifth. A combination down the middle rocked Sulecki, an iron-chinned Polish middleweight who survived the incoming attack and the round.

His luck eventually ran out once Pacheco found the sweet spot.

Pacheco worked behind his jab in the early portion of the sixth round. Sulecki fought in reverse and did well to avoid the incoming. He even slipped a straight right hand by Pacheco, who instinctively shifted and launched his left hook to the liver.

Sulecki dropped to the canvas and clutched his side in pain. Referee Ray Corona reached the count of ten as Sulecki was still on the deck, where he remained deep into Pacheco’s post-fight celebration.

Pacheco was credited with landing 81-of-280 total punches (28.9%) according to Compubox. He now joins former titlists Daniel Jacobs and Demetrius Andrade as the only fighters to hang a loss on Sulecki, who landed 49-of-207 punches (23.7%).

Andrade was an undefeated two-division titlist at the time he shut out Sulecki in their June 2019 WBO middleweight title fight. Jacobs dropped Sulecki in the final round of a unanimous decision win in their April 2018 middleweight title eliminator.

Pacheco literally refused to let Sulecki off the hook.

“He’s a strong fighter, he was coming forward,” stated Pacheco. “With my skills and hard work combined, it makes for a great fighter. That’s what I am, a great fighter.”

The Ring’s No. 4-rated super middleweight is now also in prime position to challenge for a major title in 2025.

He is already the number-one contender with the WBO. The belt is owned by Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 KOs), who is also The Ring champ and WBC/WBA titlist.

Alvarez next defends versus WBA mandatory Edgar Berlanga (22-0, 17 KOs) on Sept. 14 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The working theory is that Pacheco will get one more fight before Matchroom—with whom he signed at age 17—will seek to enforce the mandatory. If that day comes sooner, he vows to be ready for the sport’s cash cow.

“I don’t back down from any challenge,” Pacheco insisted. “Let’s get it on.”

The more likely scenario is a high-profile assignment by year’s end, even if not versus the divisional king.

“Anyone in the top ten,” vowed Pacheco, who in particular would like the Sept. 20 Jaime Munguia-Erik Bazinyan winner. “Matchroom brought a few names to the table. I said yes to all of them.”

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