LIVE: Valdez – Conceicao on FITE & ESPN

By Boxing News - 09/10/2021 - Comments

By Jim Maltzman: Oscar Valdez will be making his first defense of his WBC super featherweight title next Friday, September 10th against Robson Conceicao at the Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona. The start time for the ESPN+ streamed event is at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT.

Fight fans outside the US can watch the fight on FITE:

Image: LIVE: Valdez - Conceicao on FITE & ESPN

In the co-feature bout, unbeaten super featherweight Gabriel Flores Jr. (20-0, 7 KOs) will be fighting Luis Alberto Lopez (22-2,  12 KOs) in a 10 round fight that could be every bit as exciting as the main event.

With all the criticism that has Valdez (29-0, 23 KOs) has been given in the past week due to his leaked positive test for phentermine, there might be more boxing fans tuning in to watch his otherwise routine title defense against #14 WBC fringe contender Conceicao (16-0, 8 KOs).

Before the news of Valdez’s VADA test results were revealed, it’s likely that fans wouldn’t have bothered to tune in to watch him fight the little-known 32-year-old Conceicao, but things have changed.

The fans that are now furious at the 30-year-old Valdez are going to want to watch him fight hoping he’ll lose. Valdez wasn’t suspended, fined, or stripped of his WBC title by the World Boxing Council because they don’t view phentermine as a banned substance.

Also, Valdez has been cleared by the commission to go ahead with his fight with Conceicao, as they’re going by WADA rather than VADA.

All the flak that Valdez is getting now will likely be short-lived, as the fans tend to forget quickly when a fighter has an adverse finding.

Canelo Alvarez is a prime example of that. He tested positive for a banned substance three years ago in 2018 and you can argue that it hasn’t hurt his popularity at all.

The casual boxing won’t likely know of any of this drama, and they’ll want to watch Valdez because he’s an exciting fighter.

There could be a lot of curiously from the boxing public in how Valdez will look in the fight because some fans have their minds made up about him.

Valdez is coming off a big win over Miguel Berchelt last April, and right now he’s looking like he’s ready to clean up the division.

Oscar wanted to take on WBO 130-lb champion Jamel Herring, but he’s been ordered by the World Boxing Organization to defend against his mandatory Shakur Stevenson next.

If Valdez successfully defeats Conceicao, there’s a possibility that he could face the winner of the Herring vs. Stevenson fight. That division will be made by Top Rank promoter Bob Arum.