Liam Wilson vs. Oscar Valdez could be for WBO super-featherweight world title after Emannuel Navarrete move
Australian boxing’s most monumental weekend ever could get even bigger over the next few days, with a third Australian hoping to fight for a world title.
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Australian boxing’s most monumental weekend ever could get even bigger over the next few days, with Liam Wilson’s super-featherweight fight against Oscar Valdez potentially being elevated to world title status.
Wilson fights in Arizona 24 hours before Tim Tszyu takes on Sebastian Fundora for the unified WBO and WBC super-welterweight world titles, and Michael Zerafa challenges Erislandy Lara for WBA middleweight belt in Las Vegas.
Watch Tim Tszyu vs. Sebastian Fundora on Sunday, March 31 on Main Event on Kayo. Order the fight now
Wilson and Valdez had been preparing for a 12-round headline bout with future title ramifications for the winner.
But with confirmation this week that WBO super-featherweight champion Emmanuel Navarrete is moving up to lightweight for a title fight with Denys Berinchyk in May, those plans could change.
Wilson’s camp is hoping the WBO make the Valdez fight for the interim super-featherweight world title, meaning Australians could be fighting for four world title belts in the space of 24 hours.
“If there’s any fight that’s worthy of a world title in that division, it’s Valdez-Wilson,” No Limit boss George Rose told this masthead. “Both of them are studs in the division.
“They’ve both had great fights against Navarrete in the past – I thought Liam’s fight was better.
“It’s well and truly worthy of a world title.
“Navarrete just announced his fight, so we’ll push to put Liam in that position that he deserves to be in – and Valdez deserves to be in that position too.”
It is hoped the WBO will make a decision over the coming days about whether to make the bout an interim title fight.
Wilson has spent the last six weeks training in Las Vegas at the same gym Tszyu has been using, and is keeping an eye on the developments.
“I guess the rematch with Navarrete has sailed now, unless I move up to lightweight, but I’ll stay at super-feather,” Wilson told this masthead. “We still have nine days until the fight, so news could drop at any moment about what’s going to happen.”
Wilson and Valdez both lost to Navarrete last year.
Wilson floored the Mexican in the fourth-round in February, but Navarrete was given nearly half a minute to recover, eventually winning by ninth-round stoppage.
Valdez then dropped a one-sided decision to Navarrete six months later.
Meanwhile, WBC super-featherweight champion, O’Shaquie Foster, has also called out the Wilson-Valdez winner, with a world title unification bout possible in the future.
“That’s very possible, we’ll see what plays out in the next week or so,” Wilson said of Foster. “That’s even more reason to make the fight happen.
“He wants me and I want him. I’ll get past Oscar Valdez, and then let’s get that one happening.
“I only want the hard fights, I’ve done all the work and apprenticeships.
“Boxing’s a hard career, I’ve been doing this for 18 years and I’m 28 now.
“All I want are the hard fights.”
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Originally published as Liam Wilson vs. Oscar Valdez could be for WBO super-featherweight world title after Emannuel Navarrete move
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