Omar Narvaez-Felipe Orucuta II: Pre-Fight Report Card

by Cliff Rold

The statistics are impressive.  The reality varies.

In his last outing, Argentina’s Omar Narvaez became the first man to post ten or more title defenses in two different weight divisions, knocking out Antonio Garcia in four rounds.  The statistic was impressive.

The reality was less so.

Garcia, then 13-1, didn’t provide much test, a trend through too much of Narvaez’s title reigns at 112 and 115 lbs.  It’s been more the case in the latter.  Aging, if still able, Narvaez has rarely sought much in the way of challenges since his sole loss via decision to Nonito Donaire.  That outing, an attempt to add a title at 118 lbs., is recalled for its passive surrender.

It was too bad.  At his best, Narvaez has and still can be a quality fighter.  He’s not been around this long because he isn’t good.

The lone exception in terms of serious threats since Donaire came in May 2013.  With the sage advice of legendary trainer Nacho Beristain to guide him, Mexico’s Felipe Orucuta took Narvaez to the brink.  Many thought he’d done enough to win.  He settled for a split decision defeat.

Orucuta’s second chance arrives Friday night (TyC, 9 PM EST).  Narvaez came within one of tying the record for consecutive Flyweight title defenses.  He’s still nine away from matching the Jr. Bantamweight mark set by Hall of Famer Khaosai Galaxy.  Standing today at 27 victories in title fights, he’s four shy of tying Julio Cesar Chavez for the most ever. 

Orucuta has the opportunity to stop it all cold.    

Let’s go to the report card.

The Ledgers

Omar Narvaez
Age: 39
Title: WBO Jr. Bantamweight (2010-Present, 10 Defenses)
Previous Titles: WBO Flyweight (2002-10, 16 Defenses)
Height: 5’3
Weight: TBA
Hails from: Trelew, Chubut, Argentina
Record: 42-1-2, 23 KO
Rankings: #1 (TBRB, BoxingScene, ESPN, Ring, BoxRec)
Record in Major Title Fights: 27-1-1, 12 KO
Current/Former World Champions Faced: 5 (Adonis Rivas UD12; Luis Lazarte DQ10; Brahim Asloum UD12; Carlos Tamara UD12; Nonito Donaire L12)

Vs.

Felipe Orucuta

Age: 28
Title/Previous Titles: None
Height: 5’7
Weight: TBA
Hails from: Nicolas Romero, Mexico
Record: 29-2, 24 KO
Rankings: #6 (TBRB), #7 (BoxingScene, BoxRec), #8 (Ring)
Record in Major Title Fights: 0-1
Current/Former World Champions/Titlists Faced: 2 (Julio Cesar Miranda TKO10; Omar Narvez L12)

Grades
Pre-Fight: Speed – Narvaez B+; Orucuta B 

Pre-Fight: Power – Narvaez B; Orucuta B
Pre-Fight: Defense – Narvaez A; Orucuta B
Pre-Fight: Intangibles – Narvaez B+; Orucuta B+

Writing for BoxingScene after their first encounter in Buenos Aires, Miguel Rivera noted, “Orucuta outworked Narvaez in many of the rounds and landed the hard, crisper punches. Narvaez would often run for most of the round and then attempt to steal it in the final moments with quick bursts of punches from both hands.”  The scoring was odd with one judge favoring Orucuta at 118-110 while the other two favored Narvaez at 115-113. 

Orucuta’s success started with the jab, and was aided by his advantage in size.  While the fight didn’t always sizzle, there were long tracks where Orucuta was able to control the action by keeping Narvaez at the end of the stick, touching him with rights and lefts upstairs as Narvaez got close and body shots inside and out.  When Narvaez was against the ropes, Orucuta had success with the uppercut.

He wasn’t always touching him clean.  One of the things keeping Narvaez around so long is his defense.  He’s an intelligent, reflexive fighter who uses his head, shoulder, gloves, and feet to play the elusive target.  As bad as he looked offensively against Donaire, his defense left Donaire without much chance to shine.  As the first bout with Orucuta wore on, Orucuta had to be frustrated by attempts at sustained assault that slid just past the mark. 

Narvaez got his best work done when he could get close.  The southpaw can box more than one way.  At Flyweight, against solid challengers like Bernard Inom, his boxing could be traditional and effective, working off the jab and opening his man up for attacks.  He can also work from all sorts of odd angles, popping up with wide looping rights and short chopping shots.  It’s not easy to predict what he’ll try but, outside Donaire, the common theme is he finds something that works.

Like Orucuta, he often struggled to land clean in the first fight but his punches can be easier to see and score.  He didn’t, and doesn’t, abandon his jab but had a hard time making it work against Orucuta given the space the challenger could create.  The size gap remains and it figures that Narvaez will struggle to win the lead battle again. 

The Pick

Anytime a fighter is defending at home, and the first result was debatable, one can wonder about more of the same.  The judging pool looks solid in this case, all three being imported from the US.  We should get a fair verdict.

At 28, Orucuta’s youth and the lessons he learned in their first fight should be advantages.  With Beristain in his ear, it’s not going to get easier for Narvaez this time.  They’ve had a year and more to focus on what little things they might have missed the first time to make it more clear in the sequel.  If Orucuta can resist prolonged stretches of playing to Narvaez’s strength, swinging and missing while the Argentine looks for counters, if he can go back to his jab quicker, Orucuta can win this fight.  While he’s lost a step from his prime, Narvaez still has enough speed to mess with the more orthodox challenger and land effective pot shots when that doesn’t happen.

It won’t be enough this time.  Orucuta is on the road again and won’t leave room for doubt this time.  Youth, and size, prevails as Orucuta again sets the pace and outworks Narvaez, controlling the offensive surges of Narvaez better in the process.  The pick is Orucuta by decision. 

Report Card Picks 2014: 45-19

Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com