Navarrete drops Valdez 3 times, gets KO in 6th to retain 130 title
After going distance and winning lopsided decision in first fight, 'Vaquero' makes it look even easier in their rematch
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The first time Emanuel Navarrete faced Oscar Valdez, he won a clear unanimous decision in an action-packed fight to retain the WBO junior lightweight title. He had a much easier time in their rematch.
Navarrete, who came into the fight 0-1-1 in his last two bouts but this time with his left hand finally healthy, scored three knockdowns and knocked out interim titlist Valdez in the sixth round of a mandatory bout in the main event of the Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card on Saturday night before 8,438 at Footprint Center in Phoenix.
After Navarrete outpointed Mexican countryman Valdez in their first encounter (119-109, 118-110 and 116-112) in August 2023 in an all-action fight of the year contender he struggled in a draw against Robson Conceicao and then moved up to lightweight in May for a shot at the vacant WBO belt.
Navarrete lost a split decision to the undefeated and highly technical boxer Denys Berinchyk and elected to return to the 130-pound division to face Valdez, who had claimed the interim belt while Navarrete was moving up to 135 pounds in an effort to win a world title in a fourth weight class.
Navarrete, who had surgery on his left hand, entered the rematch with Valdez without the hand being a problem and dominated the hard-charging Valdez, who showed the typical fire and heart as he always has but was simply outgunned by the bigger, stronger, longer man.
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