Emanuel Navarrete will face Liam Wilson for a vacant 130-pound title Friday in Glendale, Arizona, on ESPN and ESPN+.
EMANUEL NAVARRETE (36-1, 30 KOS) VS. LIAM WILSON (11-1, 7 KOS)
- Date: Friday, Feb. 3
- Time: 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
- Where: Desert Diamond Arena, Glendale, Arizona
- TV/Stream: ESPN, ESPN+
- Division: Junior lightweights (130 pounds)
- At stake: Vacant WBO title
- Pound-for-pound ranking: None
- Odds: Navarrete 11½-1 favorite (average of multiple outlets)
- Also on the card: Arnold Barboza vs. Jose Pedraza, junior welterweights; Andres Cortes vs. Luis Melendez, junior lightweights; Xavier Martinez vs. Yohan Vasquez, junior lightweights
- Prediction: Navarrete KO 9
- Background: Navarrete has already conquered two divisions. Now the 28-year-old Mexican is going for a third. He’ll be making his debut at 130 pounds when he faces Wilson for the vacant WBO title, which would give him belts in both the featherweight and junior lightweight divisions simultaneously. He’s not ranked by the WBO. He received the opportunity to fight for the 130-pound title because he holds a 126-pound belt. The high-volume puncher reportedly won’t make a decision on the weight at which he’ll fight long term until after the fight on Friday. Navarrete hasn’t lost since he was outpointed in his fifth professional fight, in 2012. He was last in the ring this past August, when he stopped Eduardo Baez in six rounds. Wilson is taking a significant step up in opposition. He’s an obscure Australian who has only 12 pro bouts and has never fought outside his native country. The WBO’s No. 3 contender has won two consecutive fights since he was knocked out in five rounds by Filipino Joe Noynay in July 2021. Wilson is tall for the division, 5-foot-9.
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