Home Breaking Emanuel Navarrete vs Liam Wilson – Results & Post-Fight Report

Emanuel Navarrete vs Liam Wilson – Results & Post-Fight Report

Navarrete-Wilson became three-weight world champion overseeing Liam Wilson in the ninth round after seeing off an early scare in the fourth round.

By
Paul Mason
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Wilson and Navarrete served up a FOTY contender. (Photo Credit: Top Rank Boxing)
Wilson and Navarrete served up a FOTY contender. (Photo Credit: Top Rank Boxing)

Emanuel Navarrete claimed the vacant WBO super featherweight title at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, but had to get off the canvas for the first time as a professional before halting Liam Wilson in the ninth round.

Mexico’s Navarrete (37-1, KO31) came into this one as a two-weight world champion, having reigned as WBO boss at super bantamweight and featherweight, and he was moving up to the 130 pound division for the first time. Australian Wilson (11-2, KO7) was stepping into world title class for the first time, having accepted the call-up to replace Oscar Valdez in facing Navarrete.

There was controversy on the scales before the fight, with accusations of tampering made by team Wilson, but the contest went ahead as planned.

The early rounds were quiet ones, but Wilson sprang explosively into life at the end of the fourth, when he detonated a left hand to the chin of Navarrete, which left him on shaky legs, and eventually forced him to the canvas. The Mexican’s mouthpiece came out during the knockdown, and he was afforded enough time to recover his senses, with Wilson unable to finish the job despite pouring the pressure on. It took time for Navarrete to regain control of himself, and he was shaken up once more in the sixth by another Wilson left hand, and he was bundled to the deck again, with no knockdown called.



After back and forth action in the seventh and eighth, where Wilson kept punishing any errors, the ninth saw the fight turn on its head. A massive right hand dropped Wilson, and Navarrete didn’t need a second invitation to close the show, and after Wilson beat the count, an onslaught that the Aussie couldn’t get out of the way of forced the referee to step in.


On the undercard, Arnold Barboza Jr (28-0, KO10) defended his WBO Intercontinental super lightweight title, with a points win over two-weight world champion Jose Pedraza (29-5-1, KO14). Two scores of 96-94 and a third at 97-93 saw the Californian take the win.


Andres Cortes (19-0, KO10) also remained undefeated, taking all ten rounds of his super featherweight contest against Luis Melendez (17-3, KO13).


At super lightweight, Lindolfo Delgado (17-0, KO13) extended his unbeaten record with an eight round points win against Clarence Booth (21-7, KO13), and heavyweight hope Richard Torrez Jr (5-0, KO5) needed just a round to see off James Bryant (6-3, KO4).


Nico Ali Walsh (8-0, KO5) also saw action, and the grandson of the legend took a six round points verdict against Eduardo Ayala (9-3-1, KO3) at middleweight.



In the sole four rounder on the bill Emiliano Vargas (3-0, KO2) won all four sessions at lightweight against Francisco Duque (1-2, KO0).


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