Oscar Valdez says he has studied Emmanuel Navarrete’s style and is confident he will dethrone the WBO light heavyweight champion in their rematch this Saturday, December 7, at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona.
(Credit: Top Rank)
Valdez (32-2, 24 KOs) feels he knows what he did wrong in his one-sided 12-round loss to Navarrete last year on August 12, 2023, and wants to make it right 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 in this fight. weight class. Navarrete has looked 100% hitable in three of his last four fights against these fighters:
– Denis Berinchik: 12-SD loss
– Robson Conceicao: 12 draws (*controversial should be defeat).
– Liam Wilson: TKO 9 (*Controversial. Saved by 4th round knockout)
Saturday’s Navarrete-Valdez event will be shown live on ESPN and ESPN+ at 10:30 PM ET/7:30 PM PT/
Navarrete vs. Valdez scores
119-100
118-110
116-112
Valdez: “I’ll be smarter?
“I have a world title fight against Emmanuel 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,” Oscar Valdez said. Sean Zittel. “I trained smart for this fight.
“Now I know what to expect.” I was in the ring with him. I know he hits hard. I know it’s awkward. Now I’m going to the gym and we’re training specifically for this fight. I went in for the first time not knowing what to expect or thinking I knew what to expect until I stepped into that ring with him.
“Now that I know that, I’ll be a smarter fighter out there.” I thank the Lord that I have another chance to fight him because I feel like many fighters don’t get a second chance. I was one of those fighters who gets another chance. I feel blessed and more excited than ever,” Valdez said.
Former two-division world champion Valdez claims he didn’t study Navarrete for his previous fight, which is hard to believe. How did 2008 and 2012 Olympian and former two-division world champion Valdez not study Navarrete to pick out areas he could exploit? Coming into that fight, Navarrete had only lost once in his career many years ago, in 2012, and was not the type of fighter to be overlooked.
Valdez vs. Navarrete Punch Stats
– Navarretta: 216 of 1038 shots for 21%
– Valdez: 140 of 436 for 32%
“This is a fight for me. This is the fight that defines my career,” Valdez said of his rematch against Wacker 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 to a rematch with someone who actually beat me,” Valdez said. “It can make it even more complicated because you know you were 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 always have to come back.” you can do it. Just because you lose, 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 who really beat me. It was not a close fight.”
Navarrete’s vulnerability
Either can make a comeback, but as their previous match was last year, Valdez will need a much different approach to win the rematch. Navarrete has looked limp and washed out in three of his last four fights since last year. The only fight he did well was against Valdez. Additionally, Navarrete should be 1-3 in his last four fights. The umpires and the umpire bailed him out in a fight with Konseika and Wilson.
He lost to Denis Berinchik in his last fight, and even in that match he came close to winning even though it was a one-sided match. Berinchik schooled an out-of-form Navarrete on May 18, defeating him by split decision over 12 rounds in San Diego, California.
I scored 11-1 for Berincik. It was completely one-sided, but I wasn’t surprised that the judges in Southern California gave it a close call. 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 win. I want to give that example. “To set that example, I have to win this fight first,” Valdez said.
In their previous fight on August 12, 2023, Navarrete appeared to have too much size and strength for the 5’5 1/2″ Valdez. The three guys the 5’7″ Navarrete has had trouble against in the last year have either been taller than him or the same size. Valdez and his coach, Eddie Reynos, will need a better game plan because he doesn’t have the size or power to beat Navarrete like Wilson, Berinchik and Conceicao did.
