Unified strawweight titleholder Yokasta Valle retained her IBF and WBO belts with a near-shutout points victory over Anabel Ortiz in Cartago, Costa Rica, on Saturday. Scores were 100-90, 99-91 and 99-92 for the local star, whose record now stands at 30-2 (9 KOs).

Ortiz (rated No. 4 by The Ring going into the fight) was aggressive from the start, but the No. 1-rated Valle, being the taller and overall more skilled fighter, was able to blunt those attacks and return fire as well as set up her own combinations behind an effective jab. And she easily could’ve controlled the fight that way, but Valle also opted many times to jump into the trenches with Ortiz and slug it out. The action ramped up steeply in the final rounds as Ortiz fought bravely but desperately to change the tide and Valle showed no interest in letting her off the hook.

What a fight so far between Yokasta Valle and Anabel Ortiz!#ValleOrtiz pic.twitter.com/LH7uXGqNEF

— Golden Boy (@GoldenBoyBoxing) November 5, 2023

This was Valle’s ninth title defense; she picked up the IBF strap with a split decision over Joana Pastrana in 2019 and added the WBO belt in 2022 with a shutout victory over Thi Thu Nhi Nguyen. With Ortiz (33-6, 4 KOs), who was herself a longtime holder of the WBA title, out of the way, Valle is now focused squarely on fellow pound-for-pounder Seniesa Estrada, who holds the Ring, WBA and WBC belts at 105 pounds.

“I want Seniesa Estrada for my next fight,” said Valle. “She has the other two titles, and I want to become the undisputed champion in this division.”

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