Foster unified the WBC/WBO/IBF super featherweight world titles with a decisive unanimous decision win over Emanuel Navarrete (40-3-1, 33 KOs) Saturday night at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas.
As expected, Navarrete was relentless, but he could scarcely land punches cleanly on Foster, who mixed in footwork and counters to keep Navarrete at bay.
As the rounds progressed, Foster grew more confident and began standing his ground to trade. And by the championship rounds, Foster’s corner was asking him to end the show.
The 33-year-old native of Orange, Texas, scored two knockdowns in the twelfth round, but Navarrete survived.
Foster won with scores of 118-108 2x and 115-111.
Foster said, “It was a great performance. I finished strong, and I put him down twice in the end. A lot of people were saying that I didn’t have power and that I wouldn’t be able to keep him off me. But I showed that I am a complete fighter.”
“I want to become undisputed. That’s my dream. I want to make history, and all I need is one more.”
Navarrete said, “In this sport, it’s about styles. And his style was better than mine today. Congrats to him. I knew he was an exceptional and complete fighter. I knew what we were facing. Perhaps I could have pushed more, but I’m content with my performance.”