A historic doubleheader awaits, as a former two-division world champion will make his ring return in familiar territory and an undisputed four-belt queen will be crowned for the first time in the minimumweight division.
Mexican warrior Oscar Valdez will face Australian former world title challenger Liam Wilson in a special 10-round junior lightweight attraction on Friday, March 29 at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. Valdez, making his seventh appearance in the Grand Canyon State, joins Wilson in seeking redemption in the arena that hosted their last defeats.
In the co-feature, WBC/WBA champion Seniesa “Super Bad” Estrada and WBO/IBF ruler Yokasta Valle collide in a highly anticipated showdown for the undisputed minimumweight crown. The prolonged war of words between the two world champs will culminate in a milestone 12-round fight presented in association with Golden Boy Promotions and MarvNation Promotions.
Valdez-Wilson & Estrada-Valle headline a stacked card streaming live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+.
Promoted by Top Rank, in association with No Limit Boxing, tickets go on sale Friday, Feb. 2 at 10 a.m. MST via Ticketmaster.com.
“The Arizona fight fans are passionate and knowledgeable, and we have an incredible event in store at Desert Diamond Arena,” said Top Rank chairman Bob Arum. “Oscar Valdez is the consummate Mexican fighter, and he is facing a skilled, all-action Aussie in Liam Wilson. The undisputed title fight featuring two of the sport’s most skilled women is main event-worthy as well. There is no love lost between Seniesa and Yokasta, a long-standing rivalry that promises to deliver in the ring.”
Valdez (31-2, 23 KOs), the fighting pride of Nogales, represented his country at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. As a pro, he won world titles in two weight classes, defeating Matias Rueda to capture the WBO featherweight title in 2016 and knocking out Miguel Berchelt in February 2021 to earn the WBC junior lightweight strap. After a competitive fight against Olympic gold medalist Robson Conceição later that year, Valdez suffered his first pro loss in a unification battle against Shakur Stevenson in April 2022. He bounced back with a decision victory in a rematch against Adam Lopez in May 2023 before suffering a points loss against Emanuel Navarrete at Desert Diamond Arena last August.
Valdez said, “This fight against Liam Wilson means everything to me. It’s every boxer’s dream to become a world champion, so I have to get past this challenge so I can fight for a world title again. I respect Liam Wilson, but in the ring, I’m going to do everything possible to walk away victorious.”
Wilson (13-2, 7 KOs) is a five-year pro who went 9-0 before his first defeat against Joe Noynay in July 2021. He avenged the loss by knocking out Noynay in March 2022. Three months later, he delivered Rueda his first setback since the Valdez encounter. Wilson then made his U.S. debut versus Navarrete for the vacant WBO junior lightweight title last February at Desert Diamond Arena. Wilson dropped Navarrete and almost scored the upset in the fourth round before being stopped in the ninth. He rebounded with triumphs over Carlos Alanis in August and Jackson Jon England in December.
Wilson said, “Valdez is exactly the fight I wanted and deserve after what I went through against Navarrete. The history books show that he beat both of us last year, but this time around we won’t need the officials. Valdez is a good fighter, a tough man, but after what I’ve been through already and what I plan on bringing, I believe he’s going to regret taking this fight.”
Estrada (25-0, 9 KOs), a world-class fighter across three weight divisions, claimed an interim flyweight title against Olympic bronze medalist Marlen Esparza in a 2019 bout that was contested with 10 three-minute rounds. Two years later, she secured the WBA minimumweight and WBO light flyweight belts, defeating Anabel Ortiz and Tenkai Tsunami. Estrada vacated her light flyweight title to pursue undisputed glory at minimumweight. She signed with Top Rank in 2022, and following an 11-month layoff, shut out Jazmin Gala Villarino in November of that year. In 2023, she picked up the WBC strap against the previously unbeaten Tina Rupprecht in March and retained her unified titles with a points verdict over Leonela Yudica in July.
“Yokasta is not on my level and undeservingly carried those belts for too long,” Estrada said. “Yokasta, her promoter, and her trainer have had a lot to say. On March 29, I’m going to shut them all up. I’m leaving Arizona with all the belts and will continue to prove why I’m a pound-for-pound champion.”
Valle (30-2, 9 KOs) seized the vacant IBF atomweight world title by overcoming Ana Victoria Polo in December 2016. After an unsuccessful bid for the WBO light flyweight title against Naoko Fujioka in December 2017 and an interim title loss to Rupprecht in June 2018, she snatched the IBF minimumweight world title from Joana Pastrana in August 2019. Valle added the WBO title to her collection with a win over Thi Thu Nhi Nguyen in September 2022 and has since defended her unified crown four times, including a decision over Ortiz in November.
Valle said, “I am over the moon that Seniesa finally said yes to this big fight. In reality, she had no other option because we chased after her so much. She had no alternative but to face me because the great fans of this sport demanded this fight. Boxing fans can expect a great fight. Once I get into the ring, I am going to give the performance of a lifetime.”
The undercard will feature a host of unbeaten contenders and rising prospects, five of whom made appearances at Desert Diamond Arena last year.
Lightweight contender Raymond “Danger” Muratalla (19-0, 16 KOs) will fight Argentina’s Agustin Ezequiel Quintana (19-2-1, 13 KOs) in a 10-rounder. A seven-year pro, Muratalla put the division on notice last year with three stellar performances. He stopped Humberto Galindo with a body shot in March, handed Jeremia Nakathila his first TKO loss in May, and stopped then-unbeaten Diego Torres in eight rounds in November.
U.S. Olympic silver medalist Richard Torrez Jr. (8-0, 8 KOs) will look to retain his 100 percent knockout ratio in a scheduled eight-round tilt against Don Haynesworth (18-8-1, 16 KOs). The rising heavyweight earned first-round stoppage victories over James Bryant in February and Willie Jake Jr. in August and a second-round TKO over Tyrrell Anthony Herndon in October. Torrez vanquished veteran Curtis Harper via eighth-round TKO in December.
Lightweight prodigy Emiliano Fernando Vargas (8-0, 7 KOs), the youngest son of former world champion Fernando Vargas, will lock horns with Nelson Hampton (10-8, 6 KOs) in a six-rounder. Vargas went 6-0 with five knockouts last year, including a second-round knockout against Brandon Mendoza in November.
Phoenix native Sergio Rodriguez (10-0-1, 8 KOs) will take on Sanny Duversonne (12-6-2, 9 KOs) in a six-round middleweight contest.
Ricardo Ruvalcaba (11-0-1, 9 KOs) will see action in a six-round junior welterweight fight.
By Random Hits