Oscar Valdez says he’s studied Emanuel Navarrete’s style and feels confident that he will dethrone the WBO super featherweight champion in their rematch this Saturday, December 7th, at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona.
(Credit: Top Rank)
Valdez (32-2, 24 KOs) feels he knows what he did wrong in his lopsided 12-round unanimous decision loss to Navarrete last year on August 12th, 2023, and he wants to make the corrections this time.
Oscar isn’t saying what his career options are if he suffers a similar one-sided loss to Navarrete (38-2-1, 31 KOs) because if he can’t win this fight, it’s hard to imagine him continuing on in this weight class. Navarrete has looked 100% shot in three of his last four fights against these fighters:
– Denys Berinchyk: 12-SD loss
– Robson Conceicao: 12 Draw [*controversial should be loss].
– Liam Wilson: TKO 9 [*Controversial. Saved from a knockout in the 4th round]
Saturday’s Navarrete-Valdez event will be shown live on ESPN and ESPN+ at 10:30 p.m. ET/7:30 p.m. PT/
Navarrete vs. Valdez scores
119-100
118-110
116-112
Valdez: “I’ll Be Smarter?
“I’ve got a world title fight against Emanuel Navarrete. Knowing that I made a lot of mistakes in the first fight, I can always go back and see our mistakes and train hard in the gym,” said Oscar Valdez to Sean Zittel. “I’ve been training smart for this fight.
“Now, I know what to expect. I’ve been in the ring with him. I know he hits hard. I know he’s awkward. Now, I go to the gym and we’re training specifically for this fight. The first time, i went in and not knowing what to expect or thinking I knew what to expect until I stepped foot inside that ring with him.
“Now, that I know that, I’m going to be a smarter fighter in there. I thank the lord for having another opportunity to fight against him because I feel like a lot of fighters don’t get a second chance. I’v been one of those fighters that have another opportunity. I feel blessed and more excited than ever,” said Valdez.
The former two-division world champion Valdez claims he didn’t study Navarrete for his previous fight, which is difficult to believe. How can a 2008 and 2012 Olympian and former two-division world champion Valdez not have studied Navarrette to pick out areas he could capitalize on? Going into that fight, Navarrete had only lost once in his career many years ago in 2012, and he was not the type of fighter that anyone could overlook.
Valdez vs. Navarrete Punch Stats
– Navarrete: 216 of 1038 punches for 21%
– Valdez: 140 of 436 for 32%
“This is the fight for me. This is the fight that defines my career,” said Valdez about his rematch against ‘Vaquero’ Navarrete on Saturday night. Valdez also lost to Shakur Stevenson. So, he can’t just say the Navarrete fight “defines” his career because the loss to Shakur looked even worse.
“This is the first time I’m going with a rematch with somebody that has actually beat me,” said Valdez. “It can make it more complicated because you know you’ve been in there with them, and your mind can play tricks on you, saying you lost to him.
“No, I want to be an example that you can lose, but you’re always obligated to come back. You can do it. Just because you lost, it doesn’t mean you’re out. I proved that in my last fight against Liam Wilson, but I want to make an even better impression coming back against the guy that really beat me. It wasn’t a close fight.”
Navarrete’s Vulnerability
Everyone can come back, but the way their previous fight was last year, Valdez is going need a much different approach for him to win the rematch. Navarrete has looked flabby and washed in three of his last four fights since last year. The only fight he performed well was against Valdez. Other than that, Navarrete should have a 1-3 record in his last four fights. The judges and the referee saved him in his fight with Conceicao, and Wilson.
He lost to Denys Berinchyk in his last fight, and even in that match, he came close to winning despite it being a one-sided match. Berinchyk schooled an out-of-shape-looking Navarrete on May 18th, beating him by a 12-round split decision in San Diego, California.
I scored it 11-1 for Berinchyk. It was completely one-sided, but I wasn’t surprised that the judges in Southern California scored it close. That was expected, but it was anything but close. Navarrete looked like he hadn’t missed too many meals.
“It was a one-sided fight. I want to prove that you can train and you can come back and be victorious. I want to set that example. For me to set that example, I’ve first got to win this fight,” said Valdez.
In their previous fight on August 12, 2023, it looked like Navarrete had too much size and power for the 5’5 1/2″ Valdez. The three guys that the 5’7″ Navarete has had trouble against in the last year were either taller than him or the same size. Valdez and his trainer, Eddy Reynoso, are going to need a better game plan because he doesn’t possess the size or the power to get the better of Navarrete like Wilson, Berinchyk, and Conceicao did.
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