Yokasta Valle has taken the lead in the new era for the strawweight division.

The three-division titlist has entered her second 105-pound reign after a repeat win over Mexico’s Elizabeth López Corzo. Valle won by scores of 100-89, 98-92 and 98-91 Friday at Camara de Ganaderos in Liberia, Guanacaste, Costa Rica.

With the victory, Valle (32-3, 10 knockouts) claimed the vacant WBC strawweight title.

“Thank you Costa Rica, this is for you,” San Jose’s Valle exclaimed after the ESPN Knockout headliner.

It wasn’t easy in the beginning for Costa Rica’s boxing queen. Valle, No. 1 at 105 and No. 8 pound-for-pound by The Ring, was forced to adjust to the aggressive approach of Lopez (11-7-5, 2 KOs) in the early rounds. It was not dissimilar to their Dec. 2021 meeting, won by Valle in one of her nine IBF strawweight title defenses.

Valle, 32, was credited with a second round knockdown. However, she was just as surprised by the call as was her opponent. What was an apparent push and slip instead produced an eight count from the referee. Lopez pointed to the center ring logo as her protest fell on deaf ears.

It didn’t deter the visiting challenger from applying constant pressure. Lopez continued to come straight at Valle in the third, though she landed very little once there.

Valle settled into a groove in the fourth round and never really looked back. Her clean, combination punching was the difference over the long haul. Lopez wildly flung punches, while Valle threw classic one-twos.

The local favorite let her hands go in rounds six and seven. A flurry of punches left Lopez on the defensive as Valle began to pile up her lead.

Valle connected with a left hook upstairs. She found herself on the canvas, slipping as a right hand landed on Lopez. The referee wisely waved off the sequence as a slip.

The crowd’s energy fueled Valle in the closing rounds, as she continued to beat Lopez to the punch. Lopez plowed forward, usually head first and looking to land right hands over the top. Valle was prepared every time and often connected with a jab or a straight right hand.

The two embraced at center ring at fight’s end, though the verdict was clear. Lopez knew it, as she fell to 0-4-1 in major title fights.

Valle now enters her fourth career title reign across three weight divisions. She previously held the IBF atomweight and IBF/WBO junior flyweight titles.

The heart of her title-fight experience came during her IBF strawweight run. She made nine successful defenses of the belt she held since Aug. 2019.

Her memorable run included a Sept. 2022 win over unbeaten Thi Thu Nhi Nguyen in her San Jose hometown. Valle defended the IBF belt and won the WBO title in their unification bout.

She followed the feat by lifting the IBF and WBO 108-pound titles from Evelin Bermudez less than three months later. Valle only held the titles for a few weeks before she returned to strawweight.

Three more defenses followed before Valle’s divisional summit meeting with Estrada. Their memorable March 29 RING/undisputed championship clash saw Estrada prevail via unanimous decision.

It turned out to be the last ever fight for Estrada, who announced her retirement in late October. Valle wished her longtime rival well but left the door open for a rematch should she decide to fight again.

“Whenever she is ready to return, I would be delighted to give her the opportunity for a rematch,” Valle told The Ring. “It’s a fight that people really want to see again.

“Until then, I will focus on my goals and continue to push myself towards more world titles.”

One more is now in Valle’s collection.

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