WBO super featherweight champion Emanuel Navarrete didn’t quite have the success he was looking for in the lightweight division when he took on Denys Berinchyk in May earlier this year in a bid to secure the vacant WBO lightweight title. So, he came back down to square off against rival Oscar Valdez to defend his super featherweight title he acquired in February 2023 against Liam Wilson.

The pair originally exchanged blows back in August last year, which saw the 29-year-old sail past Valdez with heavy blows to secure a unanimous decision win. When they collided again headlining in the two-title-fights ESPN card at Footprint Center on December 7th, the fight was Valdez’s shot at vengeance.

After his initial loss to ‘Vaquero’ Navarrete, the 34-year-old went toe-to-toe with Liam Wilson securing a 7th-round knockout win and earning a second shot at Navarrete’s belt.

However, when they met again earlier this month, fortune didn’t favor Valdez even as he underwent much more rigorous training from his coach Eddy Reynoso.

Navarrete defeated Valdez again in their rematch with a much stronger 6th-round knockout on December 7th. Regardless, the VADA test results have come to light for both fighters, as the testing organization took X to announce the update. “Congratulations to Emanuel Navarrete & @oscarvaldez56 for successfully completing @Vada_Testing through their December 7, 2024 bout,” they wrote. 

That being said, how do their two fights compare? How much better did Navarrete perform in the rematch?

Emanuel Navarrete vs. Oscar Valdez II: CompuBox breakdown

Navarrete dropped Valdez three times en route to a spectacular victory, so right off the bat, the 29-year-old definitely improved on his prior result. However, even in terms of punches landed—Navarrete seems to have been the better boxer. During their first skirmish, Navarrete threw 463 punches and landed 79 punches in the first half of the fight. 

Now, during their rematch, Navarrete brought down the number of punches thrown but found overwhelming success with the number of punches landed—threw 380 punches and landed 105 punches in the first half of the fight. To top it off, Navarrete landed 35 power shots over the last 2 rounds, thoroughly punishing his Mexican counterpart. 

It appears VADA has officially legitimized Emanuel Navarrete’s dominant rematch victory over Oscar Valdez. However, there was never any real doubt that either fighter would test positive for banned substances. What did you think about Navarrete’s performance? Does Valdez need to reconsider his strategy, having recorded three losses in the last three years?