WBO featherweight champion Emanuel ‘Vaquero’ Navarrete 35-1 (29) wants the big fights after scoring a unanimous decision win over Joet Gonzalez 24-2 (14) at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California on Friday night.
In a brutal fight that was fought at a hectic pace, Navarrete threw 979 punches to 667 for Gonzalez according to CompuBox stats.
The tone of the fight was set in the first round with duo combining to throw 126 punches including 84 power shots. Navarrete drew first blood, opening a cut under the right eye of Gonzalez that continued to bleed a swell throughout the bout.
During the third round Navarrete opened up the cut further and continued to target the wound for the rest of the fight.
But despite the injury Gonzalez bravely battled on, undeterred by the swelling that was threatening to close his right eye. Expect cutman Mike Bazzel did a good job to keep it under control between rounds.
Gonzalez rallied late in the fourth, landing a right to the jaw that appeared to wobble Navarrete momentarily.
The fast-paced action continued through the middle rounds with both men having their moment. Navarrete would land his looping shots from all angles before Gonzalez fired right back.
In the eighth Navarrete found himself on the canvas after Gonzalez stepped on his foot. During the same round the 28-year-old Mexican-American was warned by referee Ray Corona for a low blow.
The two-way slugfest continued through the last four rounds. The sheer volume of punches thrown by Navarrete meant that Gonzalez had little choice but to keep up, which he tried valiantly to do.
Navarrete averaged almost 92 punches per through the last third of the fight. Gonzalez averaged almost 65.
Gonzalez strayed low again in the 10th and copped another warning, but bizarrely referee Corona told Navarette to get up and fight rather than offering him up to five minutes to recover.
In the 11th Gonzalez stepped on Navarrete’s foot again at the same time he landed a left hook, sending him to the canvas again. Corona correctly ruled it a slip.
In a frantic final round Navarrete threw 104 punches to 79 for Gonzalez. It was a fight high output for both boxers.
In the end the judges favoured Navarrete’s workrate and slightly high connect percentage, awarding him the victory by scores of 118-110 and 116-112 twice.
“It was a very close fight but I think the difference between us was conditioning,” the 26-year-old Mexican champion said. “Without a doubt I hurt him, but every single time he came back. He also hurt me with a couple of shots that he landed during the fight.
“It has been an exciting ride so far, and from now on, I want the bigger fights. These are the kind of fights I’m looking for and without a doubt, I’d beat him in a rematch.”
Gonzalez said: “I thought I had it seven rounds to five, eight rounds to four. I was really surprised by that score of 118-110, I believe. But it is what it is, and I did my best.”
