Valdez authors masterpiece, brutally KOs Berchelt to win junior lightweight title

Dominates all-Mexican showdown

Oscar Valdez and Miguel Berchelt may not have delivered the fight of the year contender they and so many others anticipated, but what Valdez did deliver was a career-best performance punctuated by a knockout of the year contender.

Valdez, the heavy underdog, outboxed, outpunched and outhustled Berchelt, knocking him down twice before scoring a massive knockout in the 10th round to win the WBC junior lightweight world title in the main event of the Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card Saturday night inside the bubble of the conference center at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“There’s nothing better in life than proving people wrong,” said Valdez, as he clutched the green and gold WBC belt. “I have a list of people who doubted me. My idols (including Julio Cesar Chavez Sr.) doubted me. Boxing analysts doubted me. They said Berchelt was going to knock me out. I have a message to everybody: Don’t’ let anyone tell you what you can and can’t do.”

Heading into the fight many expected Berchelt, who was making his seventh title defense, and former featherweight titlist Valdez to put on a fight reminiscent of some of the great all-Mexican battles, such as between Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales.

But while it was certainly an entertaining fight, Valdez, the mandatory challenger, dominated most of the bout and fought a virtually perfect fight against his bigger, stronger opponent. In fact, Berchelt had blown up from 130 pounds at Friday’s weigh-in to a whopping 146.2 pounds on fight night to Valdez’s 140.

“Oscar Valdez proved he is one of the great Mexican champions,” said Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, who has promoted many great Mexican stars, including all three Barrera-Morales fights as well as fights involving Chavez, Juan Manuel Marquez and many others. “An absolute masterpiece in the ring tonight.”

Valdez was much quicker and used his hand and foot speed advantage to land stiff jabs and solid left hooks throughout the fight while darting away before Berchelt could land enough punches to do any major damage.

Valdez, an emotional fighter, also kept his poise and tied up just enough to prevent Berchelt from landing too many powerful right hands. He never allowed Berchelt to drag him into a brawl. The work trainer Eddy Reynoso, best known as Canelo Alvarez’s trainer and manager, has done with Valdez since he began training him in mid-2018, a stretch of five fights in a row, was clear.

Valdez gave Berchelt a bloody nose in the second round and continued to make him miss and make him pay in the third round.

Valdez had a huge fourth round, rocking Berchelt with a left hook to the temple and following with an uppercut and left hook to knock him into the ropes, which referee Russell Mora properly ruled a knockdown since the ropes kept Berchelt from going down to the canvas.

Berchelt’s legs were very shaky after the fourth-round onslaught and he was in such trouble in the fifth round that Mora implored him to “show me something” or he would stop the fight.

Berchelt rallied a bit in the sixth and seventh rounds but never came close to dropping Valdez or winning any rounds decisively.

By the eighth round Valdez was back in control, doing as he had done earlier in the bout – landing hooks, a few overhand rights and avoiding any major return fire.

In the ninth round, Valdez landed a clean right uppercut and a left hook to drop Berchelt for the second time with a minute left in the round. Berchelt, whose face was swelling, was in rough shape and seemed to be fighting only on instinct and heart.

Valdez (29-0, 23 KOs), 30, a two-time Mexican Olympian, rocked him with a left hook in the 10th round and then just before the bell rang to end it he landed a massive hook that short-circuited Berchelt’s legs and dropped him face first to the mat. Mora tried to catch Berchelt as he fell before waving off the fight without a count at 2 minutes, 59 seconds.

Berchelt (38-2, 34 KOs), 29, whose two defeats have both been by knockout, was down for a few minutes receiving medical attention but was finally able to get to a stool before being taken to the hospital as a precaution.

Berchelt’s CT scan was normal and he did not need to stay overnight at the hospital, according to Top Rank.

Valdez landed 149 of 534 punches (28 percent), many of which we clean head shots, and Berchelt connected with 99 of 447 blows (22 percent), according to CompuBox.

Valdez led 89-80, 88-81 and 87-82 at the time of the stoppage, although judge Max DeLuca stunningly gave Berchelt the first three rounds.

But all Valdez cared about was winning what was by far the biggest fight of his career.

“I’m so happy right now, I can almost do a back flip like (unified lightweight world champion) Teofimo Lopez,” Valdez said of his fellow Top Rank fighter’s signature post-fight move. “I want to take this belt home, and I’m happy for that.”

As for what Valdez wants to do in the future, his aim is to unify titles and make big fights. Top Rank president Todd duBoef said he’d like to eventually match Valdez with Shakur Stevenson, the undefeated former featherweight titlist and top junior lightweight contender, who was at the fight.

“Any champion out there,” Valdez said. “I heard Shakur Stevenson wants to fight. Let’s do it. I just want to keep on fighting and give the fans what they want.”

Flores shines on undercard

Junior lightweight prospect Gabriel Flores Jr., who was taking the biggest step up in competition of his young career, dropped former world title challenger Jayson Velez twice in an impressive sixth-round knockout victory in the co-feature.

Flores (20-0, 7 KOs), 20, of Stockton, California, controlled the fight and then landed a left hook to the temple in the sixth round that dropped Velez (29-8-1, 21 KOs), 32, of Puerto Rico, who was very unsteady when he beat the count. Moments later, Flores landed another left hook and he went down again, and referee Tony Weeks waved off the fight at 1:47.

“I sent a statement that I’m ready for a world title,” Flores said. “I hit him, and he didn’t see the punch coming. That’s why he was so hurt. I could’ve done it earlier. I was playing with my food. Nothing was really going on those first five rounds, to be honest. I was just feeling him out.

“I would love to get the winner of (world titlist) Jamel Herring a=nd Carl Frampton. I’d love that. I’m going to keep on working, and my performances are going to get better and better.”

Rodriguez taken distance

Junior welterweight Elvis Rodriguez (11-0-1, 10 KOs), 25, of the Dominican Republic, one of boxing’s top prospects, was extended the distance for the first time in his career but won handily over Luis Alberto Veron (18-3-2, 9 KOs), 28, of Argentina. Veron had never been stopped and Top Rank was hoping he would give Rodriguez rounds. Rodriguez won 79-73, 79-73 and 78-74.

“This was my first scheduled eight-round fight, and I actually think I got a lot of good experience,” the Freddie Roach-trained Rodriguez said through a translator. “Each fight, you acquire something different, and for this fight, I think the experience of going the rounds actually helped me out.

“It’s back to the gym to work on several things. Specifically, I know I needed to let my hands go a little more. When I did do that, I was able to hurt him. But in the end, I think it was a great experience.”

Zayas scores shutout

Welterweight Xander Zayas (7-0, 5 KOs), an 18-year-old prospect from Sunrise, Florida, got a good test from James Martin (6-2, 0 KOs), 23, of Philadelphia, but won every round in a 60-54 shutout from all three judges.

“I did some things well in there, but I still have a lot of room for improvement,” Zayas said. “The rounds will serve me well as I continue to develop. As a young fighter, you need these types of fights. I haven’t been out of the first round in nearly a year, so for me to get six round in, that was important.”

Also on the card:

Robert Garcia-trained middleweight contender Esquiva Falcao (28-0, 20 KOs), 31, a 2012 Brazilian Olympic silver medalist, broke down fellow southpaw Artur Akavov (20-4, 9 KOs), 35, a two-time world title challenger from Russia, forcing him to quit after the fourth round with a suspected broken nose.

Milwaukee middleweight Javier Martinez (3-0, 1 KOs) knocked out Billy Wagner (3-2, 1 KO) of Great Falls, Montana, at 1:51 of the first round.

Junior welterweight Omar Rosario (3-0, 1 KOs), who won the 2020 Puerto Rican Olympic trials at 152 pounds, stopped Santa Ana, California’s Uriel Villanueva (1-1, 0 KOs) at 2:38 of the second round, in which Rosario scored two knockdowns.

The heavyweight fight between Philadelphia prospect Sonny Conto (6-0, 5 KOs) and Phoenix’s Waldo Cortes (6-3, 3 KOs) was canceled earlier Saturday because Cortes tested positive for Covid-19.

Photos: Mikey Williams/Top Rank