Emanuel Navarrete and O’Shaquie Foster meet on Saturday, 24 October, at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, with three of the four super featherweight world titles on the line. Navarrete brings the WBO and IBF belts, Foster the WBC. Top Rank is promoting, the card is live on DAZN, and the winner has the strongest claim to be the best fighter at 130 pounds. It’s Mexican pressure and volume against a Texan who has made a career out of winning close, clever fights.
Tale of the tape
| Emanuel Navarrete | O’Shaquie Foster | |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 40-2-1, 1 NC (33 KO) | 25-3 (12 KO) |
| Titles | WBO and IBF super featherweight | WBC super featherweight |
| Age | 31 | 33 |
| Height | 170 cm (5 ft 7 in) | 173 cm (5 ft 8 in) |
| Reach | 183 cm (72 in) | 183 cm (72 in) |
| Stance | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Division | Super featherweight, 130 lb (59 kg) | Super featherweight, 130 lb (59 kg) |
| From | San Juan Zitlaltepec, Mexico | Orange, Texas, USA |
| Last fight | W TKO 11 Eduardo Nuñez, 28.02.2026 | W MD 12 Raymond Ford, 30.05.2026 |
Records, titles, ages, height, reach and stance: Top Rank.
Emanuel Navarrete: the volume puncher who unified the belts
Navarrete has been a world champion for nearly eight years. His run started with the December 2018 upset of Isaac Dogboe at 122 pounds, and he has since won titles at featherweight and super featherweight as well. A move up to lightweight in May 2024 ended with a split-decision loss to Denys Berinchyk, and he then went back to 130.
What he’s done since is impressive. He dropped Óscar Valdez three times and stopped him in six in their December 2024 rematch. The May 2025 fight with Charly Suarez, first scored as a technical-decision win, was later changed to a no contest. Then in February he broke down Nuñez, who came in on a 19-fight winning streak, over ten hard rounds. With Nuñez’s eye badly swollen, the fight was stopped one second into the 11th.
His style is famously awkward: long, looping shots, wide uppercuts thrown from range and a work rate that rarely drops. He isn’t hard to hit, but he takes a good shot and keeps throwing.
Recent form (Top Rank / BoxRec):
- W TKO 11 (0:01) Eduardo Nuñez, Glendale, 28.02.2026 (WBO title retained, IBF title won)
- NC 8 Charly Suarez, San Diego, 10.05.2025 (originally a technical-decision win)
- W KO 6 Óscar Valdez, Phoenix, 07.12.2024
- L SD 12 Denys Berinchyk, San Diego, 18.05.2024 (vacant WBO lightweight title)
- D MD 12 Robson Conceição, Las Vegas, 16.11.2023
O’Shaquie Foster: “Shock” and the art of the close fight
Foster turned pro in 2012, and his career changed when he started working with trainer Bobby Benton in 2017. He won the vacant WBC title against Rey Vargas in February 2023, then stopped Eduardo “Rocky” Hernandez with 22 seconds left in the 12th round in Cancún. He lost the belt to Robson Conceição on a split decision in July 2024 and won it back from him four months later.
The last two fights have been the best of his career. He beat two-division champion Stephen Fulton clearly in San Antonio in December 2025, then outpointed former featherweight champion Raymond Ford at home in Houston in May. Against Ford he was patient early, found the range with his right hand in the middle rounds and finished stronger.
He’s a boxer-puncher rather than a knockout artist: tidy defence, a good jab and well-timed counters. The flip side is that five of his last six fights have gone to the scorecards, and four of those were split or majority decisions.
Recent form (Top Rank / BoxRec):
- W MD 12 Raymond Ford, Houston, 30.05.2026 (WBC title retained)
- W UD 12 Stephen Fulton, San Antonio, 06.12.2025
- W SD 12 Robson Conceição, Verona NY, 02.11.2024 (WBC title regained)
- L SD 12 Robson Conceição, Newark, 06.07.2024 (WBC title lost)
- W SD 12 Abraham Nova, New York, 16.02.2024
Styles: how Navarrete vs Foster plays out
This is a classic contrast. Navarrete wants a high-output fight where his volume and odd angles wear the other man down. Foster wants to keep it at the end of his jab, step off the line and make Navarrete pay with counters as he comes in.
On paper they’re almost the same size (5 ft 7 in and 5 ft 8 in), with the same 72-inch reach. The difference is how they use it. Navarrete’s wide uppercuts and hooks from distance leave openings, and Foster is good at timing shots into those gaps. But Foster has rarely faced anyone who throws as much for twelve rounds, and Navarrete’s record against good opposition shows he gets stronger as the fight goes on, as Nuñez found out.
Key factors
- The pace. If Navarrete can keep the rate high from the middle rounds, Foster’s careful style gets harder to keep up.
- Clean shots vs volume. Foster lands the cleaner, sharper punches. Navarrete throws more. How the judges score that will decide a close fight.
- Location. San Antonio is Foster’s state (he is from Orange, Texas, and beat Fulton in this arena), but the city also has a big Mexican fanbase. Expect a split crowd.
- Experience in big fights. Navarrete has been in more world-title fights; Foster has won the last two and has the momentum.
Our pick: Foster by decision
It’s close, and Navarrete has proved people wrong before. But Foster has the tighter defence and the better jab, and Navarrete is there to be hit when he lets his hands go. We expect Foster to bank the early rounds, survive a strong push from Navarrete in the second half and do enough to win on the cards. Pick: Foster by decision. If Navarrete hurts him in the middle rounds, a late stoppage for Navarrete is the most likely upset.
Co-feature: Albert Gonzalez vs Edward Vazquez (featherweight, 10 rounds)
Unbeaten Albert “Chop Chop” Gonzalez (18-0, 11 KO), from Moreno Valley, California, faces the biggest test of his career. He trains under Robert Garcia and has won three times in 2026, most recently by second-round knockout of former title challenger Aaron Alameda in July to win the vacant NABF featherweight title. Fort Worth’s Edward Vazquez (20-3, 6 KO) has fought twice for world titles: he lost a majority decision to IBF super featherweight champion Joe Cordina in 2023 and was stopped in seven by WBO featherweight champion Rafael Espinoza in May 2025. He’s won three in a row since. Pick: Gonzalez by decision. He’s the bigger puncher, but Vazquez is experienced and hard to stop.
Where to watch Navarrete vs Foster LIVE Stream
- Date: Saturday, 24 October 2026 (in Europe, the early hours of Sunday, 25 October)
- Venue: Frost Bank Center, San Antonio, Texas
- DAZN coverage starts: 8:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM PT = 01:00 BST / 03:00 Riga on Sunday (official, Top Rank)
- Navarrete vs Foster ring walks: around 10:00 PM ET = 02:00 GMT / 04:00 Riga (DAZN estimate, not official; subject to change)
- Clock change: the UK and Latvia move their clocks back an hour at 01:00 UTC on Sunday, 25 October, right in the middle of the broadcast. The ring-walk times above already take that into account.
How to watch: live on DAZN, Top Rank’s official broadcaster for this card. DAZN says the whole card streams worldwide with a DAZN subscription. Check the price in your country on DAZN.
