OAKLAND, Calif. – Joseph Diaz Jr. defeated Jayson Velez by a unanimous decision on the Andre Ward-Sullivan Barrera card Saturday at Oracle Arena.

Diaz (20-0, 11 knockouts) played sharpshooter for the entire 10-round featherweight fight, landing hard, head-snapping lefts while also digging to the body.

The former U.S. Olympian landed a series of particularly vicious hooks in the second round, buckling Velez’s knees, but the Puerto Rican survived. That set the tone for the rest of the one-sided fight, though.

Velez (23-2-1, 16 KOs) was game throughout but took too many hard shots to win rounds. The scores reflected that: 100-91, 99-81 and 98-92, all in Diaz’s favor.

The fight was Diaz’s first on HBO. The 23-year-old contender made a strong impression as he took another step toward his first shot at a world title.