Diego Pacheco isn’t impressed by Kevin Lele Sadjo’s list of conquests.

Pacheco considers Sadjo’s knockout ratio deceiving, however, because he's beaten low-level opposition, particularly for a 35-year-old fighter who has held the EBU super middleweight title.

Ten of the first 11 fighters Sadjo (26-0, 23 KOs) defeated had losing records. Three of his five most recent victories came against opponents who had at least nine losses.

Pacheco, 24, will be the first undefeated fighter Sadjo will face when they square off Saturday night in a 12-round main event DAZN will stream from Adventist Health Arena in Stockton, California (8 p.m. ET; 5 p.m. PT).

Sadjo’s lack of experience against credible contenders notwithstanding, Pacheco expects him to come to fight much more than Trevor McCumby did July 19. Pacheco barely lost a round in defeating a reluctant McCumby by unanimous decision, 120-108, 119-109 and 119-109 on the cards.

“I think Kevin Lele Sadjo will really come to win, really come throwing punches, and that’s what’s gonna open him up to be able to get a knockout,” Pacheco told The Ring. “I do believe that Sadjo is more of a crazy fighter [than McCumby], where he’s not thinking too much about what he can run into and he’s just coming forward.

“He’s a fighter who fights on a downhill, so I expect him to just keep coming forward. And honestly, I have a surprise for him. I think he’s gonna see a completely different Diego Pacheco this fight, one that they’re not expecting for sure.”

Los Angeles’ Pacheco (24-0, 18 KOs) is the WBO’s third-rated contender for Terence Crawford’s title. Sadjo, who has resided and trained in France for many years, is ranked eighth by the WBO, though Pacheco isn’t quite sure how.

“When I first took a look at his BoxRec, I was a little surprised a guy his age was still fighting that level of competition,” Pacheco said. “It’ll be a big step up for him. It’s a bigger step up for him than it is for me, considering the guys I’ve fought recently. But obviously, I’m not looking past him or taking him lightly at all. He’s a good fighter with a lot of power and a lot of knockouts.

“But I do notice that he’s knocking out the guys who are standing right in front of him and we all know that I don’t stand in front of anybody. I box and I use my jab very well, and that’s what I plan on doing this fight as well.”

An inability for various reasons to land the types of fights he wants has frustrated Pacheco, ranked fifth in The Ring’s top 10. He hopes, however, to punctuate 2025 by producing an impressive knockout after going the 12-round distance with McCumby (28-2, 21 KOs) and Steven Nelson (20-2, 16 KOs) in two fights this year.

“I consider myself a knockout artist,” Pacheco said. “And I consider myself to be one of the hardest punchers in the division, so to have no knockouts this year is crazy to me. So, I would love to get a knockout December 13th. I’ve learned that when you go looking for the knockout, it usually doesn’t come. So, I’m just gonna do what I do, box, dominate and I think the knockout will come.”