Ranking the best five fights this weekend
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Nick Parkinson
Dec. 7 will be a busy night on the boxing calendar with significant fights happening worldwide. World titles and major belts will be on the line from Arizona and Puerto Rico to England and Eastern Europe.
Two highly anticipated world title rematches are taking place on the same bill in Phoenix: Emanuel Navarrete vs. Oscar Valdez at junior lightweight and Rafael Espinoza vs. Robeisy Ramirez at featherweight (ESPN/ESPN+, 10:30 p.m. ET, with prelims at 5:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+). In San Juan, Puerto Rico, Liam Paro bids to establish himself as a force at junior welterweight when he makes a first title defense against Richardson Hitchins (DAZN, 7 p.m. ET with prelims at 3:15 p.m. ET).
Over in London, Brad Pauls defends his British middleweight title again Denzel Bentley, with the winner possibly earning a shot at world No. 1 Janibek Alimkhanuly in 2025.
And in Sofia, Bulgaria, veterans Kubrat Pulev and Mahmoud Charr fight to stay relevant in what is a potentially eventful heavyweight encounter.
ESPN gives you the rundown on what you should be watching Saturday.
Odds courtesy of ESPN BET.
1. Rafael Espinoza (+105) vs. Robeisy Ramirez (-135), for Espinoza’s WBO featherweight title (ESPN/ESPN+)
After both visited the canvas in a thriller a year ago, it is hard to see how the eagerly awaited sequel will disappoint.
Until a year ago, Espinoza (25-0, 21 KOs), from Guadalajara, Mexico, was largely unknown. But that all changed when his vast volume of punches proved decisive in a strong finish to earn a majority decision to win the WBO featherweight title. Espinoza, 30, impressed again in his first defense, a fourth-round KO of Sergio Chirino in June.
Ramirez (14-2, 9 KOs), a two-time Olympic gold medalist for Cuba, also shone in a fight earlier this year, a seventh-round TKO win over Brandon Leon in June. Now it’s on Ramirez, 30, to show something different from the first fight and get inside Espinoza’s long range with his slick southpaw skills.
Espinoza, the tallest world featherweight champion in history at 6-foot-1, will be a formidable physical challenge for the 5-6 Ramirez. But Ramirez dropped Espinoza in Round 5 in December, before visiting the canvas himself as the volume of punches took its toll in the final round.
“I know it will be a war,” Espinoza said during a training session on Nov. 26. “I’ll be ready whether he wants to fight at a close range or from a distance. Like I said before the first fight, I’m not leaving without the title.”
Ramirez, who will have to fight at close range to land combinations, insists his preparation is better this time around. Before their last fight, Ramirez’s father was badly ill.
“He almost passed away, that affected me a lot,” Ramirez said. “My father is in Cuba, and I can’t go back, and that affected me greatly.
“And despite that, I was still able to deliver a great show. So, I do not doubt the second fight will be better.”
It’s a fascinating matchup and backstory, which could result in another fight of the year contender.
2. Emanuel Navarrete (-275) vs. Oscar Valdez (+210), for Navarrete’s WBO junior lightweight title (ESPN/ESPN+)
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Emanuel Navarrete wins instant classic vs. Oscar Valdez
Emanuel Navarrete comes out victorious in a 12-round classic vs. Oscar Valdez in Arizona.
There have been some great all-Mexican rivalries in boxing history: Ruben Olivares-Chucho Castillo, Lupe Pintor-Carlos Zarate, Zarate-Alfonso Zamora, Marco Antonio Barrera-Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez-Antonio Barrera and Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez, among others.
You can add Navarrete-Valdez to that list if they produce another fight like their last, when Navarrete (38-2-1, 31 KOs), of Mexico City, won a unanimous decision over his rival Mexican to defend his WBO junior lightweight title in August 2023.
Navarette believes the rematch will be better, saying they are more familiar with each other and that will lead to more exchanges and better action.
“There is a lot of pride at stake, especially in a Mexico vs. Mexico battle,” Navarrete said during a training session on Nov. 27. “When you have that dynamic, there’s always going to be pride. Valdez and I know that adds more significance to this fight.”
A victory for Valdez, who made six defenses as WBO featherweight champion from 2016 to 2019 and then made one defense as WBC junior lightweight champion in 2021, would see him join an elite list of three-time world champions from Mexico. In order to do so, Valdez will have to overcome Navarrete’s size and power with some better movement than in their last fight.
Navarrete utilized his 2-inch height/6-inch reach advantages, and Valdez must stick to a clever game plan to avoid another punishing beating. Navarrete, 29, threw 1,038 punches, against only 483 for Valdez.
Valdez (32-2, 24 KOs), from Sonora, told ESPN earlier this year: “I was a bit disappointed with my performance against Navarrete. … He’s an awkward fighter, a volume puncher. … I made a few mistakes and I would change a few things looking back, but you learn from your mistakes.”
Valdez has the technique and movement to avoid making the same mistakes vs. Navarrete, as he showed in a classy seventh-round stoppage win over Liam Wilson in March. Valdez admits he made a mistake focusing on the knockout in his fight with Navarrete and has been working on “fighting smarter” in the rematch.
A lot hinges on how comfortable Navarrete is at making 130 pounds after last boxing at 135 pounds against Denys Berinchyk. Navarrete is in unconvincing form, after he lost a split decision to Berinchyk in May challenging for the WBO title. In his last title defense a year ago, Navarrete drew with Robson Conceicao. He has been training in the mountains of Mexico to prepare for Valdez, and conditioning could be vital as the fight goes on.
“The second half of the fight will be less about technique and more about physical training and who is the best prepared to withstand the punches,” Navarrete said.
3. Brad Pauls (+115) vs. Denzel Bentley (-140), for Pauls’ British middleweight title
Pauls (19-1-1, 11 KOs) makes a first defense of his British middleweight crown with the incentive of progressing to a world title shot in 2025.
Pauls, 31, from Cornwall, England, faces English rival Bentley, 29, from London, at the OVO Wembley Arena. He’s coming off a 12th-round TKO victory over Nathan Heaney, after knocking him down twice in July. Pauls, who is in better form than Bentley and looked dangerous against Heaney, has impressively gotten this far without the backing of a major promoter. Everyone likes an underdog story, and Pauls is just one or two wins away from a world title shot.
Pauls’ energy and hunger could prove decisive, if Bentley fails to show he has what it takes to compete at elite level. Bentley (20-3-1, 17 KOs) has come up short in the harder tests he has faced so far, including a narrow majority-decision loss to Heaney a year ago. Bentley also suffered a unanimous-decision defeat in a WBO world title shot against Janibek Alimkhanuly (now IBF and WBO champion) two years ago, and a third-round KO to Felix Cash in 2021.
Bentley and Pauls are the Nos. 1 and 2 contenders, respectively, for Alimkhanuly’s WBO belt, so there’s plenty at stake. Expect a competitive fight.
4. Liam Paro (-120) vs. Richardson Hitchins (-110), for Paro’s IBF junior welterweight title (DAZN)
Paro (25-0, 15 KOS), from Brisbane, Australia, faces a potentially tough first defense of his IBF junior welterweight title after becoming champion via an upset decision win over Subriel Matias in June. Hitchins (18-0, 7 KOs), from New York, is also coming off his biggest win yet, a tough unanimous decision against the previously unbeaten Gustavo Lemos in April.
Paro, 28, goes into this fight with the opportunity to strengthen his status at 140 pounds, with potential future fights against the likes of Devin Haney and Teofimo Lopez.
Paro, who has prepared in Florida, boxed well off the back foot against Matias, and if he can repeat that against Hitchins, 27, he will retain his title. Hitchins will be motivated to produce a stoppage win after Paro taunted him about his single digit knockout ratio.
5. Mahmoud Charr (+190) vs. Kubrat Pulev (-250), for Charr’s WBA “regular” heavyweight title (DAZN)
This is a rare opportunity to see these two heavyweights, who are better known for their inactivity than their knockouts. But it is one to keep an eye on, as the winner will be left highly placed for a world title shot in 2025. Oleksandr Usyk holds the WBA title, along with the WBC and WBO belts, and on the line will be Charr’s WBA secondary “regular” world title. Despite both being in their 40s, the winner technically has a good chance of progressing to a world title shot next year.
Charr (34-4, 20 KOs), from Syria but based in Germany, has only fought three times in seven years and last boxed two years ago, while Pulev (31-3, 14 KOs) has lost two of his past five fights. But despite their inactivity and advanced age (Pulev is 43, Charr is 40), and whatever your opinion is of diluted world titles, don’t write this fight off.
As their careers reach the end of the line, they will need to produce something special to set up a big payday in 2025, and that could produce some drama. Pulev, who has fought better opponents in recent years and was knocked out in world title attempts versus Anthony Joshua (2020) and Wladimir Klitschko (2014), will be highly motivated in front of his home fans. That aggression could see his hand raised.
