Oscar Valdez feels confident that he will avenge his loss to WBC super featherweight champion Emanuel “El Vaquero” Navarrete in his rematch in 15 days on December 7 at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. The card will be shown live on ESPN and ESPN+ at 10:30 pm ET / 7:30 pm PT.
Former two-division world champion Valdez (32, 2, 24 KOs) feels he fought a poor fight when he lost (38-2-1, 31 KOs) by a wide 12-round unanimous decision last year on August 12. 2023, in Glendale, Arizona. Valdez, 33, says he wasn’t following his trainer’s game plan and was looking for a one-punch knockout.
Oversize
It seemed that the 5’7″ Navarrete was too big for the 5’5″ Valdez and used his six-inch length advantage to dominate the smaller fighter. If Valdez had better power, he might have won, but he was bigger and outplayed by Navarrete. It probably won’t change in the rematch, no matter how good the game plan is.
Navarrete vs Valdez Punch Stats
– Emanuel Navarrete: 279 of 1024 shots for 27.2%
– Oscar Valdez: 141 of 493 punches for 28.6%
With the kind of volume that Navarrete had, Valdez never had a chance because he couldn’t match that output, and he didn’t in the rematch. It’s not built for that. The only guys who can beat Navarrete are slick fighters like Denys Berinchyk or those with massive power like Eduardo ‘Sugar’ Nunez.
Valdez isn’t the only one looking to avenge a loss on Dec. 7. Two-time Cuban Olympic gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez (14-2, 9 KOs) will challenge WBO featherweight champion Rafael Espinoza (25-0, 21 KOs) in a rematch of their fight last year on December 9 of 2023.
Robeisy lost a 12-round majority decision to the 6’1″ and relinquished his WBO belt. Ramirez-Espinoza will fight in the co-main event on December 7th.
Is Valdez really a different fighter?
“I’m going to beat him because I’m a better fighter, and I have different styles in my arsenal,” said Oscar Valdez to Fighthype about why he will defeat Emanuel Navarrete on December 7.
“My game plan was off. We had a good game plan, but I left it because I was looking for that shot,” Valdez said of why he lost to Navarrete last year. “The fans were there, he was strong, and he wanted to go for that one-shot knockout. It didn’t work, especially with a fighter like ‘El Vaquero’ Navarrete.
“So, going back and watching the fight, I say, I made a lot of mistakes. So, I train day by day to become better, a smarter fighter in the ring.
Valdez is coming off a seventh-round knockout victory over Liam Wilson on March 29 in Glendale, Arizona. It was a good win for Valdez, but he wasn’t a guy on Navarrete’s level. Indeed, Wilson had already been fired by Navarrete on March 3, 2023.
If Valdez loses the rematch with Navarrete, he should consider dropping to 126 pounds because he is too small to fight in this weight class at 130.
We saw that in Valdez’s loss against the 5’8″ Shakur Stevenson on April 30, 2022, in a one-sided 12-round unanimous decision loss. Shakur looked huge compared to Valdez. It was a lightweight against a featherweight because Valdez was too small.
Valdez learns from mistakes
“When I fought Shakur, I was 100% ready for that fight, and I didn’t do anything to Shakur. So, as far as the El Vaquero fight, I know I’m a better fighter. I know I can win this fight. It’s just that I lost the game plan,” Valdez said. “When I fell, I lost my fire. I made a lot of rookie mistakes, and that’s what will be different from this one: being the smarter fighter.”
Valdez did everything right against Navarrete, but he couldn’t make up for the size, power and bulk. That won’t change in the rematch.
“That’s what worries me more about this loss than when I fought Shakur Stevenson,” Valdez said. “A lot of times, it’s not about losing. It’s about knowing you gave your best. In my last fight against El Vaquero, I know I wasn’t the best I could have been.”
“When I look at all the fighters at 130, the guy to beat is El Vaquero. 135, why not in the future? I consider myself a small 130. Maybe I’ll test the water in the future and see if my body can adapt to that division,” Valdez said to be able to move to lightweight in the future.
