WBO super featherweight champion Emanuel Navarrete and challenger Oscar Valdez both made weight successfully on Friday for their showdown on ESPN this Saturday night, August 12th. Navarrete (37-1, 31 KOs) came in over the limit on his first attempt at the scales at 131.1 lbs, but after stripping down, he made the weight at 130 lbs.
Valdez weighed 129.8 lbs and looked good at the weight, ready to try and dethrone Navarrete on Saturday night. If the fight is competitive, promoter Bob Arum says he wants to set up an immediate rematch.
ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT
- Emanuel Navarrete 130 vs. Oscar Valdez 129.8
- Lindolfo Delgado 140.7 vs. Jair Valtierra 139.4
- Richard Torrez Jr. 235.4 vs. Willie Jake Jr. 249.6
ESPN+, prelims at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT
- Emiliano Fernando Vargas 134.8 vs. Jorge Luis Marquez Alvarado 133.7
- Antonio Mireles 270.7 vs. Dajuan Calloway 391.7
- Eduardo Ayala 160 vs. Sergio Rodriguez 161
- Ricardo Ruvalcaba 141.6 vs. Adrian Orban 141.5
Oscar Valdez: “It’s an honor for both of those guys to be there. The world works in mysterious ways. The way things have aligned that I never thought of as a kid,” said Valdez to Top Rank Boxing about Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales to be present this Saturday night for his fight against WBO super featherweight champion Emanuel Navarrete.
“Both of them are my idols. It’s kind of a dream come true with the way things are happening right now.”
“I’m not the type of guy that likes too much face-offs. Let’s just get this over with, the face-offs. Let’s get in the ring. That’s where I enjoy it,” said Valdez.
“We’re getting closer to the fight. This is sucky part. We got interviews to get out of the way, and you got family coming. That’s where you’ve got to stay most focused.
“It depends. You get older, and you’ve been in the same weight class for a long time, or in my weight class, it’s been about the same,” said Valdez when asked if it becomes harder to make weight.
“It might be better than 126. I was champion at 126, and it was brutal. I wasn’t able to eat for over a week.”
Emanuel Navarrete: “I think Valdez brings with him a certain kind of confidence. He comes confined that he can do good things, and well, we’ll see. We’re going to try to put the brakes on him.
“We’re going to try to compete with him in an intelligent and strong way.”
Bob Arum: “The scary fight to watch is two guys; neither of them knows how to quit. They’ll be in there fighting until their last breath.”
