By Jimmy James: WBC Super featherweight champion Oscar Valdez fought yesterday against Brazilian prospect Robson Conceicao, an unknown boxer ranked number 15 who was granted the opportunity to fight for a world championship. The unknown Brazilian yesterday showed the boxing world he is no joke and showcased his skills against a very static Valdez who at times looked lost and without a response to counter Conceicao’s defensive moves leaning behind the jab.
Valdez was handed a very controversial unanimous decision that he did not deserve. The scorecards were totally biased to favor the Mexican star, who seemed very happy to hear the final result. The fight was not close at all, worst of all, Conceicao made Valdez look like an amateur in the ring. Boxing is about boxing, and there are no rules on how to win based on someone’s style. Styles made fights and the Brazilian toyed with Valdez in a way that made him uncomfortable and limited.
Lately, Canelo Alvarez and Eddie Reinoso have received a lot of criticism, and they need to wash their image immediately because it’s starting to look rotten from the inside out what this whole saga has turned into. The WBC and Reinoso’s team have delved in dangerous territory, where cheating is now, apparently, allowed in boxing. The WBC allowed Valdez to take this fight to protect his tarnished image from being found positive for PED usage. The result against the Brazilian yesterday, will not help erase the image of Valdez.
Valdez needs to rematch Conceicao to help erase and clean yesterday’s controversial result. There cannot be any questions or excuses for this rematch. Valdez blatantly ducked Shakur Stevenson and Gary Russell Jr in 126lb and went up to 130lb trying to avoid the big cats calling his name out. He has never unified one belt in his whole career.
In a fighter’s legacy, controversial fights mold into rematches, and rematches turn into trilogies. Many of these boxers are ducking rematches. Gennady Golovkin ducked a rematch against Sergey Dereyenchenko; Canelo Alvarez ducked a rematch against Erislandy Lara and Anthony Joshua ducked a rematch against Joshua Parker. Fighters today do not want to rematch because they are simply too scared to lose their undefeated record.
If Valdez does not rematch Conceicao, I would recommend the Brazilian to launch an investigation against Reinoso’s camp and the WBC to have a noncontest declared since Valdez was allowed to fight after testing positive with an illegal substance. The whole saga between the WBC and Reinoso’s camp is something too big to avoid and leave behind.
Valdez needs to set this rematch win or lose. His legacy will not look good if he plans to skip over the thin line between credibility and complacency. People will remember this fight as a loss to his credibility, and he won’t be able to take that spine away no matter how much he tries to avoid it. Floyd Mayweather Jr., despite his controversy as a boxer, gave Jose Luis Castillo the rematch and won it more convincingly. Valdez needs to grow a pair and fight the Brazilian as soon as possible because for now, most of his countrymen don’t believe one word that comes from his mouth and we all know Conceicao surely deserves it.