Mexican former world champion Oscar Valdez (30-1, 23 KOs) returns after the first loss of his professional career. His opponent will be the American Adam Lopez (16-4, 6 KOs), who also lost the previous fight.
Both boxers in the previous fight lost the confrontation to the favorites, but the levels are fundamentally different – Valdez lost to another champion Shakur Stevenson, and Lopez lost to prospect Abraham Nova.
Valdes returns for the first time since his defeat. Lopez is a large and strong American
Oscar Valdez was very confident in dealing with opponents in the super featherweight division. The most striking confrontation took place against Miguel Berchelt in 2021. Their correspondence conflict dragged on even from amateurs. Valdes was constantly selected for the national team instead of Berchelt, and this was a chance for both to prove. Miguel could prove the coaches wrong, and Oscar could prove them right.
The second succeeded. Valdez calmly controlled the course of the confrontation, working as the second number, although not without danger. And in the tenth round he gave such a hit that it instantly became the best of the year, although the fight took place only in January.
After that, Oscar defeated Robson Conceicao, albeit quite heavily. While the Brazilian worked to the fullest, he even took the rounds, but then for some reason he reduced his activity, and the opponent, in response, began to work even harder and won. Shakur Stevenson was next. Definitely a difficult matchup for Valdes, because stylistically an American is a curse for such an opponent. And in the ring, Shakur proved his level by outboxing the puncher. And then he moved on to lightweight.
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If you look at the path of Adam Lopez during the same time, we see a very colorful life. While Oscar climbed to the top, Adam was thrown in all directions. He managed to beat Jason Sanchez. Then lose by split decision to Isaac Dogboe. His next fight against Adana Ochoa was declared invalid. Then he defeated William Encarnation. This was followed by the defeat of Abraham Nova.
Nova is an interesting boxer, but so far he is remembered more for his yellow beard than for boxing and victories. At least, when trying to reach a higher level in a duel against two-time Olympic champion Robeisi Ramirez, Nova lost. And then he returned in a duel against Lopez. The fight with Adam turned out to be fun. Lopez fell twice, but did not stop pushing and fighting in the middle distance. Nova was more accurate, efficient, but the guys put on a wonderful show.
And now Oscar Valdez and Adam Lopez are back from defeat. The first boxed at the highest level. The second did not get there, but he is much larger than his counterpart. But the main thing here is not so much this as the fact that this fight is a revenge. The guys already boxed in 2019, and then it didn’t end well for Lopez.
Oscar Valdes, though smart and technical, is still a Mexican. He likes to put on a show and worthily continues the traditions of the classics of Mexican boxing. He was not afraid to fight with the overall Adam Lopez, who loves close range as much as Oscar. The fight turned out to be eventful, but it was not possible to withstand the blows of Valdez.
In the seventh round, the Mexican began to hit too much. There was also a knockdown in the asset of Oscar. And the final very accurate finishing.
Lopez didn’t fall. He stayed on his feet until the end, but the referee wisely gave the order to end the fight. Valdes hit at random, from different angles, and did not receive any decent or any other answer.
I would like to find at least one logical argument why the second confrontation should not follow the same plot, but it is not found. This fact does not make such a fight bad, and even vice versa. Intrigue is not always the main thing in battle. Sometimes it’s just time people spend to enjoy what’s going on in the ring. And the fight between Lopez and Valdez is exactly about that.
Who is the favorite?
Oscar Valdez by a huge margin. On his victory they give 1.09. The average bookmaker odds for the opponent’s victory is 7.0.
To be honest, this fight is a clear mismatch. Adam Lopez is a strong middle peasant. He has dimensions, beats well, although he is definitely not a puncher. But this is not enough to fight for titles. And not enough to defeat a boxer like Oscar Valdez. Even if you consider that the Mexican is seven centimeters shorter and has shorter arms by nine centimeters.
Their first showdown showed the difference in class and Lopez hasn’t changed much since then. He still has a mediocre jab. He also rushes to close range, so that at least there he can already start working. Not even average, but literally close. Adam didn’t get faster or tougher. He’s still the same.
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At the same time, Valdez has definitely improved. He still takes the hit, but after three super-hard challenges against Beltran, Conceição and Stevenson, he gained experience and added it to his improved skills.
Oscar quietly works as the second number against a dimensional opponent. But at the same time, he can turn on and box with the first number. May give a wave of his hands, defending himself, and then distribute in response.
The main thing in this fight is that Valdez is faster, has better timing and a harder shot. Even with smaller dimensions, he hits harder than his opponent. It is hard to imagine why he would have problems in a rematch if in the first fight Oscar was not yet as well-formed as in the second.
That being said, don’t underestimate a fight like this as a show to watch. First of all, because of the skills of Valdez. His boxing is a pleasure to watch, he is bright and often gives out such knockouts that you want to see more. Also due to the fact that Lopez, although much easier than the opponent, is clearly a stubborn character. This guy will push, shove forward endlessly until he finds his opponent’s head or falls himself.
Even against Nova, when things went wrong, Adam continued to fight. After two knockdowns and a generally lost fight, Lopez continued to press and hit the opponent, pouring hooks in the last round.
Whether the parties will reach the final gong is not so important. Most likely no. But the show will be great. Probably much more dynamic and understandable than the main fight of the evening – the fight between Haney and Lomachenko.
Oscar Valdez vs Adam Lopez will take place on Sunday night, May 21, in Las Vegas.
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2023-05-19 23:57:00