Tag Archives: Edwin De Los Santos

Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz to Defend WBA Junior Welterweight Title Against Jose Valenzuela

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Isaac Pitbull Cruz is going on the defensive…

The 25-year-old Mexican professional boxer will defend his WBA junior welterweight title against Jose Valenzuela, according to ESPN.

Isaac "Pitbull" CruzThe fight will take place on the Terence Crawford–Israil Madrimov undercard presented by Riyadh Season, the first boxing event organized by Saudi Arabia outside the kingdom.

Cruz (26-2-1, 18 KOs) will make the first defense of the title he won last month with an eighth-round TKO victory over Rolly Romero.

That was Cruz’s first fight at 140 pounds.

Cruz has won four fights since a close-decision defeat to Gervonta Davis in December 2021. Cruz is

ESPN‘s No. 5 junior welterweight.

Valenzuela (13-2, 9 KOs) is coming off a brutal sixth-round KO win over Chris Colbert in a December rematch.

The 24-year-old Mexican lost his two previous bouts, a decision defeat to Colbert and a third-round KO at the hands of Edwin De Los Santos.

This will be Valenzuela’s 140-pound debut.

Emanuel Navarrete to Defend WBO Junior Lightweight Title Against Robson Conceicao

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Emanuel Navarrete is going on the defensive…

The 28-year-old Mexican professional boxer will defend the WBO junior lightweight title against Robson Conceicao on November 16 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Emanuel NavarreteThe fight, which will be Navarrete’s third of 2023, will serve as the chief-support bout to the Shakur Stevenson–Edwin De Los Santos lightweight title fight.

Navarrete (38-1, 31 KOs) scored the biggest win of his career in August, taking a wide-points victory over former champion Oscar Valdez.

A three-division champion, he also captured titles at 122 and 126 pounds and is ESPN’s No. 1 boxer at 130 pounds.

Conceicao (17-2, 8 KOs) will vie for a world title for a third time. The 34-year-old Brazilian was set to stay busy on Friday night underneath the ESPN main event between Luis Alberto Lopez and Joet Gonzalez.

But with the title fight presented to him earlier this week, Conceicao was a late scratch from his bout with Humberto Galindo.

“I had to three fight three times to become champion,” Conceicao told ESPN’s Mark Kriegel on Friday on the ESPN broadcast. “It’s my time.”

Conceicao’s two losses came in title fights, both under extenuating circumstances. The Olympic gold medalist dropped a disputed decision to Valdez in 2021 after Valdez tested positive for a banned substance.

Conceicao challenged Stevenson for a 130-pound title last year, but Stevenson missed weight before he soundly outpointed Conceicao.

Edwin De Los Santos Agrees to Fight Shakur Stevenson for Vacant WBC Lightweight Title

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Edwin De Los Santos is ready to Shakur things up…

The 23-year-old Dominican boxer and Shakur Stevenson have agreed to a deal for a November 16 fight in Las Vegas for the vacant WBC lightweight title.

The 135-pound title bout will headline a Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card two days before Formula 1‘s debut race on the Las Vegas Strip.

Stevenson (20-0, 10 KOs) had been slated to fight undefeated contender Frank Martin after a deal was reached last week, but Martin decided not to proceed with the bout after the contract was sent over. De Los Santos was the next available contender in the WBC‘s lightweight rankings.

De Los Santos (16-1, 14 KOs) has impressed in his past two fights. He rose off the canvas to score a third-round knockout of Jose Valenzuela in September 2022 and followed that with a unanimous-decision win over Joseph Adorno in July. De Los Santos’ lone defeat was an eight-round split decision against William Foster in January 2022.

Less than two years after that setback, De Los Santos will meet Stevenson, ESPN’s No. 9 pound-for-pound boxer, for the title formerly held by undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney.

The WBC named Haney “champion in recess” after he decided to move up to 140 pounds for a shot at the organization’s junior welterweight title. That fight for Regis Prograis‘ WBC title will take place December 9 in San Francisco.

“Most ducked fighter in the sport of boxing,” Stevenson posted on Instagram after Martin withdrew. “Edwin get ready, I’m tired of [you] saying my name.”

Stevenson, 26, is one of the fastest-rising stars in boxing. The Newark, New Jersey, native has won titles at 126 and 130 pounds and will look to do the same in a third weight class.

A southpaw who is perhaps the sport’s best defensive fighter, Stevenson scored a sixth-round stoppage of Shuichiro Yoshino in April in his lightweight debut.