Denys Berinchyk Becomes Lightweight Champion After Sloppy Bout Against Emanuel Navarrete

Denys Berinchyk (19-0, 9 KOs) became the WBO lightweight champion against Emanuel Navarrete (38-2-1, 31 KOs) on a historic day for Ukrainian boxing.

While one judge had it 116-112 for Navarrete, the other two had it 116-112 and 115-112 for Berinchyk. The bout headlined a Top Rank event at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, CA. Fight fans in the United States could catch the action live on ESPN, ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes. With the split decision win, Berinchyk joins countrymen Vasyl Lomachenko and Oleksandr Usyk as world champions from Ukraine.

Denys Berinchyk Becomes 135-lb Champion After Sloppy Bout

Emanuel Navarrete vs. Denys Berinchyk fight recap

Berinchyk was constantly on the move in the opening round, moving around Navarrete, towards him, and away from him. The Mexican was unable to put punches together. While he had a better second round, his shots did not seem to affect Berinchyk.

By the middle rounds, both men were connecting with greater frequency. However, Berinchyk’s constant movement allowed him to avoid many of the swinging shots of Navarrete. As a result, the Ukrainian was able to outbox his opponent for many of the rounds. Fighting at a new weight class, Navarrete seemed unable to assert the style that had become associated with him and appeared to become frustrated as the bout went on.

While Navarrete had his moments, particularly in the last two rounds, he was unable to mount an offence that could trouble Berinchyk. The Ukrainian was able to stymie his opponents attacks throughout the bout. His work convinced two of the judges that he was the worthy winner.

The overall fight was a sloppy one. Berinchyk’s constant movement meant that Navarrete could not sit down on his punches. It also appeared that the Mexican fighter struggled with the increase in weight. At present, he remains the WBO super featherweight champion and has yet to be stripped of the title.

Post-fight Interviews

Berinchyk

“He’s a real champ,” said Berinchyk. “Navarrete, muchas gracias.”

“Maybe Shakur Stevenson, maybe Keyshawn Davis or (Raymond) Muratalla. I don’t know. I don’t give a f---,” he said when asked about a fight against Lomachenko.

Navarrete

“At the end of the day, I want to thank everyone that came out to San Diego,” said Navarrete. “This is like home. They have taken me in as one of their own…I want to thank Denis for a great performance. I came to this division which is new for me.”

“I knew it was going to be difficult and it was difficult. Denis moved around a lot. Am I happy with the result? Absolutely, not. I take this as a learning opportunity. I have a lot to improve on. That’s exactly what I plan on doing.”

Undercard results

Brian Norman Jr. (26-0, 20 KOs, 2 NCs) brutally knocked out hometown fighter Giovani Santillan (32-1, 17 KOs). The time of stoppage was for this 12-round welterweight contest was 1:33 of the tenth. With roughly two minutes to go in round 10, Norman sent Santillan to the canvas with a right uppercut. The San Diego native got up, but was a bloody mess. Not long after, a right and left uppercut knocked Santillan down once again, causing referee Ray Corona to halt proceedings.