WBO Junior Lightweight world champion Emanuel Navarrete found himself as the slight underdog in his title unification fight Saturday night against IBF counterpart Eduardo ‘Sugar’ Núñez. El Vaquero hadn’t looked good in his last fight against Charly Suarez and skeptics wondered whether Navarrete was on a downward slide after so many wars.
“El Vaquero” Navarrete told the boxing world to hold his cerveza. At age 31, Navarrete outslugged and outclassed Núñez in his best performance in years, forcing a referee stoppage after the tenth round to become the unified junior lightweight champion.
Navarrete of San Juan Zitlaltepec, Mexico (40-2-1, 33 KOs) is now a unified champion for the first time.
Núñez of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico (29-2, 27 KOs) considered Navarrete his idol and knew his tricky style would be a challenge. Navarrete also has a reputation for coming out hot, and this fight was no exception.
Whether it was the magnitude of facing Navarrete in a dream fight or the pace, Núñez couldn’t get into gear in the first four rounds. Navarrete was a buzzsaw coming at him with his awkward swinging punches and unusual angles.
Navarrete At His Best In Years
Finally, Núñez stepped up the pace, and from the fifth round to the final tenth round, it was the action fight everyone in Glendale, Arizona, came to see. But it wasn’t competitive. Navarrete was landing uppercuts, body shots, and hard headshots at will.
Only the sheer determination and heart of Núñez kept him in the fight. He was willing to go out on his shield to give himself the chance to turn thing around. But it wasn’t going to happen. His face began to show the accumulated damage from Navarrete’s power shots. His right eye began to swell, and he suffered a cut above the eyelid. By the ninth round, Núñez couldn’t see punches coming from the left.
The ringside physician let the fight continue into the tenth round. Referee Benjamin Rodriguez watched closely, but didn’t step in. Navarrete targeted Núñez’s weakened eye and made his face a bloody mess.
Broadcasting ringside for TV Azteca in Mexico, Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. was on his feet, shouting at the referee and at Núñez’s corner to stop the fight. At the conclusion of the round, the fight was finally waved off.
Navarrete: “Heart and Guts”
It was a stunning reversal from Navarrete’s last fight, and perhaps his best fight since his first victory over Oscar Valdez in 2023. His face was virtually unmarked, remarkable for a fighter who suffers a lot of cuts. What was behind the turnaround?
“I feel like there are many things that I’ve gone through,” said Navarrete. “There are so many things difficult to explain, but what I feel like I’ve got back is that heart, those guts of a Mexican warrior. I’m really grateful to everyone. I want to continue in this same vein and continue to show this new version of Vaquero.”
Navarrete and Núñez are good friends outside the ring and stood with their arms around each other’s shoulders in the ring. Navarrete was asked if it was hard for him to keep punishing the obviously hurt Núñez.
“This is sport. So you have to continue to work hard. It’s difficult to see your opponent is hurt in there, but also it’s really difficult to not continue and not go on and win the fight.
“You know, you never know what might happen in those last rounds. He could catch you with a shot, and it could be over. So, I needed to continue doing my work in there.”
Núñez: “It Was An Honor”
Núñez gave all the credit to Navarrete for the victory. “Nothing surprised me here with Emanual Navarrete. He was the strongest fighter at 130 pounds. I told him I was a fan, and I admired him a long, long time, and it was an honor to go in and face him.
“I would have liked to have finished the fight, but I didn’t get that opportunity because obviously the referee stopped the fight. But I want to say thank you very much to Emanuel Navarrete. I want to continue to grow and learn from this defeat, and this is just the start for Sugar Núñez. I want to be world champion again.”
Watching with interest ringside was WBC champion O’Shaquie Foster, who appears on a collision course with Navarrete in a unification fight. Navarrete declined to name a future opponent, saying he would rest and take his time to decide what’s next.
Emiliano Vargas Enjoys the Desert Heat
It was hard to tell who was enjoying themselves more: the enthusiastic Arizona fans, or the talented Emiliano “El General” Vargas. The Top Rank star and our NY Fights 2025 Prospect of the Year found himself in a firefight against Agustin Quintana of Buenos Aires.
Quintana gave Vargas his biggest challenge to date, but Vargas of Las Vegas (17-0, 14 KOs) walked through the fire and did enough damage to Quintana of Buenos Aires (22-3-1, 13 KOs) to force the stoppage.
Quintana’s face showed the damage done by the speed and power of Vargas. He had cuts on the outside of both eyes, a serious bruise under the right eye, and a bloody nose. After the ninth round, Quintana’s corner said they would need to stop the fight, and Quintana yelled, “No!”
Referee Raul Caiz Jr. stepped in to make that call. Quintana jumped off the stool, irate with Caiz Jr. He deserved to continue, but it might not have lasted another round.
“He came to fight. That’s what it’s all about,” said Vargas, who emphasized he is still young and will continue to learn. Quintana hadn’t lost in three years and recently defeated Marc Castro. He gave Vargas the test he said he was looking for. Vargas retains his WBO Latino and NABF junior lightweight titles.
Vargas gave his performance a C. “I got caught with a couple things I shouldn’t, got caught with trying to go for the knockout, but that’s what all experience is for. “All these other world champions are 28, 30, 32. I’m a young gun, but I’m coming for all the dogs. I’m coming for all the belts. I’m hungry, I’m young, and I’m happy to be here.”
With his father and trainer, the former two-time champion Fernando Vargas, at his side, Vargas said, “I think I’m meant for the championship rounds, you know? I wonder where that comes from,” smiled Vargas, with a nod to his father.
“But at the end of the day, I just want to continue to get better at my craft. I saw Chavez, and it gave me a lot of energy to finish off the fight.”
Vargas said he wants to fight a former world champion in his next fight, and fight for a world championship this year or next.
Abel Ramos Jr. Gets Big Win At Home
Winner Announcement – Abel Ramos
Perhaps it was the home cooking for Abel Ramos. In his first hometown fight in nine years, Ramos of Casa Grande (29-6, 22 KOs) finally saw a split decision go his way in a determined fight against Tahmir Smalls of Philadelphia (16-1, 11 KOs).
Ramos and his team were elated hearing “And the new!” as he took the WBA Continental Americas minor title, placing him in line for a title fight. But he admitted he felt nervous when he heard the first two scores. “Man, I had that gut feeling again that I always get after my fights. But I’m blessed.”
Smalls came out strong behind his jab as expected from a Bozy Ennis-trained fighter. Ramos invested in Smalls’ body in the early rounds. Smalls won those early rounds, but Ramos stayed the course. His patience paid off as Smalls began to wither and wear down.
In the final rounds, Ramos had Smalls hurt several times. He wasn’t able to stop him, but he won the rounds he needed down the stretch to get the win.
Sticking to the Game Plan
“It went how we expected, exactly how we planned,” said Ramos, who is trained by his brother, Jesus Ramos Sr. “With my team, we had this game plan from the beginning, and we knew it was going to work for us.”
Ramos said he adjusted after the first few rounds to evade more of Smalls’ offense. “I started moving my head more. I started getting inside and just being patient, hitting him to the stomach every now and then. The second half, it was all me,” said Ramos.
Ramos stood up to the power shots of Smalls, admitting he felt his power early. But the body shots drained Smalls, and Ramos said by the second half of the fight, “I didn’t feel like nothing, and I stuck with the body shots.”
Ramos came within a round of beating Mario Barrios and missed the chance to fight Manny Pacquiao. Who would he like to fight now, given the chance? Ramos named division champions Ryan Garcia and Rolly Romero. “
Cardenas and Martinez Deliver All-Action Draw
Super lightweight prospects Arturo Cardenas of Michoacán, Mexico (18-0-1, 9 KOs) and Jordan Martinez of Phoenix (16-0-1, 15 KOs) expected one of them would suffer his first loss. Instead, after ten blistering rounds, the fight was scored a split draw. Scores were 98-92 Martinez, 96-94 Cardenas, and 95-95.
The two prospects put on a tremendous show with nonstop action. Martinez came out strong, but Cardenas stood tough and gained ground back in later rounds. Both men are worth keeping your eye on.
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist and the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA). She is the Managing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.