The order revives unfinished business from their May 2025 fight in California, where Suarez appeared to be outworking Navarrete before the bout ended because of a cut above the champion’s left eye. The referee ruled the cut came from an accidental head clash and sent the fight to the scorecards, where Navarrete was awarded a narrow technical decision.
Video review soon complicated that ruling. Replays eventually showed the cut had likely been caused by a punch from Suarez, which would have meant a stoppage victory for the Filipino challenger. The California State Athletic Commission later declined to reverse the result to a knockout win and instead changed the outcome to a no-contest.
The ruling left Suarez without the victory many observers believed he had earned and preserved Navarrete’s title reign. The WBO responded by ordering a rematch, keeping Suarez in place as the mandatory challenger.
Navarrete has fought once since that night. The three-division champion added the IBF title at 130 pounds last month when he stopped IBF 130-lb champion Eduardo ‘Sugar’ Nunez in the 11th round of their unification fight on February 28, 2026. The victory strengthened Navarrete’s position in the division, though it also created the current obligation to deal with Suarez again.
The rematch presents a risk that did not exist before the first meeting. Suarez gave Navarrete trouble with conditioning, steady pressure, and a high work rate that forced the champion to fight at a pace he rarely controls. Those same factors could make a second fight uncomfortable for a champion who now has bigger money opportunities available as a unified titleholder.
Navarrete must now decide whether to accept the rematch or vacate the WBO belt and pursue other fights. Vacating would remove the mandatory obligation but would also end a title reign that has lasted since February 2023.
Suarez, a 37-year-old from the Philippines, has not fought since their first meeting and has remained in the WBO’s #1 position while waiting for a ruling. The sanctioning body’s order now gives him the opportunity he has been seeking.
The situation leaves Navarrete with a decision to make: defend the title against the opponent who already troubled him once, or give up the belt and move on. For a champion who escaped the first fight without a loss on his record, the rematch may represent the one fight that still needs settling.
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