This Saturday night a 2-pack of rematches take place live from the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona on ESPN and streaming on ESPN+. Emanuel Navarrete versus Oscar Valdez and Rafael Espinoza against Robeisy Ramirez do battle in what should be an entertaining night of fights. Let’s start with the co-feature on a fight card that includes Delgado vs. Marinez, Santillan vs. Lawson as well as Richard Torrez among others.
(Credit: Top Rank)
Robeisy Ramirez’s pro career started out with a thud, losing a 4-rounder way back in 2019. Slowly but surely, Ramirez was able to adjust his style for the pro ranks. Robeisy was riding a 13-bout winning streak until late in 2023 when he ran into a buzz saw. It took until the 5th round for Ramirez to catch up and eventually time Rafael with a great right hook that sent the Mexican native crashing to the canvas.
Although these two gave us plenty of exchanges throughout the fight it appeared that Robeisy was hung up on landing one big punch. Espinoza increased his punch output in barrage of combinations. Rafael was teeing off on Robeisy with both hands to the head and body to the point it put Ramirez on his backside in the final round. Espinoza overwhelmed Ramirez in the early part and on the back end winning a majority decision.
If Ramirez is to win in the rematch he will have to find success in the first half and really as early as possible. Landing lead or counter shots will no doubt be needed. Robeisy must also throw his jab way more and up his work rate and combo punching. That doesn’t automatically equate to getting in furious back and forth’s. Regardless Robeisy will need to not only hurt Rafael but likely drop him at least once.
Rafael’s consistent aggression, still using his jab along with attacking the body, will be key to victory once again. It’s more than plausible that Robeisy can make the necessary adjustments and be the boxer who lands the cleaner/harder punches. This long-time boxing fan is banking on Rafael’s pressure and overall mentality to rule the night. If Ramirez can’t hurt Espinoza, he won’t be able to stop the bolder rolling downhill that is the featherweight champion.
My Official Prediction is Rafael Espinoza by Split-Decision.
The main event between Navarrete and Valdez will produce fireworks and is a perfect description of a solid ‘TV’ fight like the old timers used to say. The interesting item about the rematch is the winner of their first meeting lost his last fight to Denys Berinchyk. Also, Navarrete had a tough scrap facing Robson Coneicao, which ended in a majority draw late in 2023. Other than that, if we are being honest, beyond a good old-fashioned slugfest, there’s really no reason for them to fight again based on the first result.
I’m not taking anything away from a proven warrior in Oscar Valdez, a boxer who has given us boxing fans many thrilling and memorable moments. That said, Oscar has taken a lot of punishment, and one wonders if he can summon the energy to overcome the adversity he will be facing on Saturday. It should be mentioned that both of the men are capable of not only winning but scoring a knockout.
Both guys have two losses but have never been stopped proudly. It may seem like a stretch to call for a stoppage but either one of these guys may be close to the end of their punch resistance. If you had to choose which fighter is closer, it would have to be Oscar Valdez. It’s worth sprinkling something on a knockout for Navarrete, but don’t bet the whole cake on it.
Valdez will have to mimic the work he put in the mid to late rounds. Oscar found a rhythm with his jab and also his best punches, left hook to the head and body. As previously mentioned it’s not that Oscar didn’t have success, he just wasn’t able to sustain it. Valdez will have to avoid sitting on the ropes and try to use his footwork on the outside. The big issue is that Navarrete was able to close the gap offensively by not allowing Valdez to move laterally effectively.
In recent years, Emanuel has mixed in his own footwork, not just coming forward but circling opponents and avoiding punches at times. This fight will have fans in the arena and at home coming out of their seats. If Oscar isn’t pushing Navarrete back more and Emanuel throws over 1000 punches, it’s difficult for Oscar Valdez to find a path to victory. Targeting the body and being more active with his jab is a must if Oscar wants to get his hand raised by night’s end.
My Official Prediction is Emanuel Navarrete by Unanimous Decision.
PODCAST LINK: http://tobtr.com/12388015
Side Note: Keep an eye out on Saturday for Liam Paro vs. Richardson Hitchins fighting on DAZN.
Written by Chris Carlson, Host/Producer of The Rope A Dope Radio Podcast Available at www.blogtalkradio.com/ropeadoperadio Follow on Twitter @RopeADopeRadio
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