WBO super featherweight champion Emanuel Navarrete says he’s not going to show any “respect” for Oscar Valdez in their rematch this Saturday, December 7th. Navarrete (38-2-1, 31 KOs) already beat Valdez (32-2, 24 KOs) once with ease, and for him, it’s just a simple matter of duplicating his efforts in their second fight.
No Respect For Valdez
A fight that is seen as a business-level one, not a sporting one; Navarrete already proved he’s on another level than Valdez, and nothing is expected to change in the needless rematch.
(Credit: Top Rank)
Valdez, 33, and his team have supposedly corrected mistakes he made in his 12-round unanimous decision loss to Navarrete a year ago on August 12, 2023, in Glendale, Arizona. The former two-division world champion Valdez came close to getting shutout in that loss, losing by the scores 119-109, 118-110, and 116-112.
It was a tough defeat for Valdez because he says he’d been 100% confident going in. But whatever he tried, it didn’t work. He says he’s improved since, but it’s hard to take him at his word because he was so overmatched in the previous fight.
Boxing fans don’t see any point in this rematch, and they’d prefer it not to happen. It’s a bad matchup for Valdez. A fight that fans want to see is Navarrete taking on these fighters:
– Rafael Espinoza: WBO 126-lb champion
– Robeisy Ramirez
– Eduardo ‘Sugar’ Nunez
– Anthony Cacace: IBF 130-lb champ
– O’Shaquie Foster: WBC
– Lamont Roach: WBA champ
– William Zepeda
– Nick Ball
– Brandon Figueroa
– Raymond Ford
Fans would like to see Navarrete fight any of those fighters rather than running it back against Valdez, a guy he easily beat just a year ago.
Navarrete-Valdez 2 will take place at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. It will be shown on ESPN and ESPN+ at 10:30 p.m. ET/ 7:30 p.m. PT.
“A Dream Come True”
“This time, it’s going to be a good fight. I already fought him. I know what he’s got. Awkward shots, he comes forward and doesn’t give off,” said Oscar Valdez to Top Rank Boxing, talking about a fight between him and Emanuel Navarrete. “I got to win this fight, come back, and it’s going to be a dream come true.
“We know what to do. We’ve put in the work, and now it’s time to show it on December 7th. I don’t need more motivation than I already have. I have a chance to redeem my loss. Getting a rematch is just as motivating as it can get.
“Now, it’s time to step it up and to win. I’m locked and loaded. There’s nothing here that will make me lose focus. Outside of the ring, you can be gentlemen. Inside the ring, there’s no respect,” said Valdez.
The best way for Valdez to win is to duplicate the performances of Robson Conceicao and Denys Berinchyk, who both turned in against Navarrete. Conceicao was robbed of a win, but Berinchyk came out victorious.
“There’s little time left before the fight, and you start to feel the nerves,” said Navarrete. “I don’t like to go back and forth with my opponents. I respect my opponents a lot. My principal instilled in me. I know I don’t gain anything by offending them.
“I always show a lot of respect. But in the ring, it’s different. I do what I have to do to walk away victorious. Outside of that, there’s nothing,” said Navarrete.
It’s going to be interesting to see what kind of physical shape Navarrete is in for this fight because he looked fat in his 12-round split decision loss to Berinchyk earlier this year on May 18th in San Diego. He looked the same in his controversial 12-round draw against Conceicao on November 16, 2023, in Las Vegas. Navarrete clearly deserved a loss in that fight, but the judges gave him a draw.
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