Going into his unification super featherweight fight against Emanuel Navarrete on Saturday night, O’Shaquie Foster wanted to prove to everyone that he was the best fighter in the world.
Foster did just that, winning a unanimous 12-round decision over Navarrete at the Frost Bank Center.
Advertisement
Facing the awkward, unorthodox style of Navarrete and a pro-Navarrete crowd, Foster won the three-belt title fight as he successfully defended his WBC super featherweight championship and took both the WBO and IBF super lightweight titles from Navarrete.
“I felt like it was a great performance,” Foster said. “I finished strong, I put him down twice at the end. I feel like there was a lot of people ready to say, I had no power and I wouldn’t be able to keep him off of me. I feel like I showed them tonight.”
In the early part of the fight, Navarrete got some early jabs to the face and body of Foster, but as the fight wore on, Foster was able to adjust to Navarrete’s unorthodox, getting several good right hooks to Navarrete.
Once Foster started getting into rhythm, he came out aggressively in the 12th round, where he planted a right hook to Navarrete, putting him down momentarily on the mat, which proved to be the clincher for Foster.
Advertisement
After going the first two rounds with Navarrete, Foster said he was able to figure his opponent’s style by the third round.
“Probably like the third (round), I started getting his timing down and his rhythm down, but man he is an awkward, strong champion,” Foster said. “It was a long night. He caught me with a couple of shots. He’s a strong champion. He got heavy hands, but like I said I got a chin. I’m not really worried about power because I feel like I got my own. So, I feel like I showed that tonight.”
Foster, the 33-year-old native of Orange, Texas, had long sought the fight with the 31-year-old Navarrete, from San Juan Zitlaltepec, Mexico, because he felt it would provide him with a great challenge.
Advertisement
“Words can’t even explain where I’m at right now,” Foster said. “It took a lot of work to get here, a lot of sacrifice and mostly a lot of belief because coming from where I come from, it just took a lot. I thank everybody, I thank God for everything.”
Foster said his next goal is to get a fourth title which would make him an undisputed champion.
“My dream is to become undisputed, make history,” Foster said. “I just made history tonight. I’m the first three belt champion within the super featherweight division. I just need one more to go undisputed to fulfill my biggest dream.”
There’s more to San Antonio with the Express-News. Subscribe today for just 25¢.
This article originally published at Foster proves he’s the best with featherweight title win over Navarrette.
