Emanuel Navarrete Retains His Title By A Majority Draw With Robson Conceicao

LAS VEGAS — On Thursday, November 16, Emanuel Navarrete took on Robson Conceicao at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The two fought in the co-feature on the card, headlined by Edwin De Los Santos vs. Shakur Stevenson.

The thrilling world championship match went the entire 12 rounds, with  Navarrete managing to finish the bout with two knockdowns. He put Conceicao out with an uppercut in the fourth round and a body blow in the seventh.

Judge Don Trella ultimately scored the bout 114–112 in favor of the champion, while judges Chris Flores and Max DeLuca scored it 113–113.

Top Rank promotes Emanuel Navarrete(38-1-1, 31 KOs) and Robson Conceicao, who are both listed in the top 10 at 130 pounds by The Ring. Conceicao and Navarrete are ranked seventh and first, respectively.

“The decision is well-deserved,” said Navarrete, 28, from Mexico in media reports. 

“Robson is a great fighter. He left his heart in the ring. There were some details with regard to technique, but we accomplished what we said we would do. We gave a great show for the fans. And, at least, I am very happy to come away with the title," he added.

“He deserves the rematch, but that decision doesn’t depend 100 percent on me. But, if it does happen, I would train even better. He knows how I fight, and I know how he fights, so it would make for an excellent fight,” he continued.

Robson Conceicao, 35, from Brazil failed in his third effort to win the world championship.

“It was a hard fight,” said Conceicao  in media reports. 

“He is very strong. It was a difficult. But I know what I did tonight," he added.

“It was a good fight. It deserves a rematch. If we do get the rematch, we will both train harder and will give an even better fight,” he continued.

Robson Conceicao(17-2-1, 8 KOs) fell to Shakur Stevenson by a unanimous decision in his previous bout, which took place in September last year. Stevenson lost the WBC and WBO world junior lightweight title belts due to his inability to meet the weight, hence Conceicao was the only one left to win them.