Hector Valdez had to make due without his full team in order to score his latest victory.

The unbeaten junior featherweight prospect picked up his second win of 2020. The latest came in an eight-round unanimous decision over Houston’s Josue Morales in their DAZN-streamed preliminary bout Friday evening at a crowdless Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California.

Judges Max DeLuca and Lou Moret scored the contest 80-72, while judge Edward Hernandez Sr. had the contest 79-73 in favor of Valdez in a bout which didn’t feature any knockdowns nor threat of such an occurrence.

Valdez showed off all of the work put in with head trainer Robert Garcia, who was unable to serve in his corner due to COVID-19 testing protocol. The renowned cornerman tested positive for the infectious disease upon arriving at Fantasy Springs, thus denying him entry into the area’s quarantine bubble. A second test came back negative, though Garcia complied with commission regulations and watched the bout from afar.

That left Dallas’ Valdez to heed the advice of Hector Beltran in between rounds. The 25-year old prospect offered a disciplined attack, firing his jab and immediately following with right hands. Morales took the shots well, as he always does in having never been dropped or stopped in 26 pro bouts prior to Friday. As much remained the case by fight’s end, although Valdez never stopped trying to change that dynamic.

Valdez dialed up his attack in round three, coming forward and looking to end the night early. Morales played defense, riding out the storm and firing back with soft right hooks that never quite found a home.  

Morales connected with a left hand out of his southpaw stance in round four, as part of his best sequence of the fight. Valdez remained calm under pressure, though coming in his least active round.

Valdez began to fight like a boxer eager to close the show. Morales was visibly hurt by a left hook to the body, tightening up his defense and throwing up the earmuffs when Valdez brought the attack upstairs.

The trend carried over into round six. Morales was a bit more stationary in the frame, sticking a quick jab in Valdez’s face on the occasions that his opponent didn’t go on the offensive. Those moments were few and far between, though Valdez’s attack came in a controlled manner. Morales sought to inch forward, only to get clipped with straight right hands for his troubles in round seven.

Morales dips back below .500, falling to 11-12-4 (1KO). The 27-year old Texan had won two straight heading into the bout.

Valdez wins for the second time in 2020, improving to 13-0 (8KOs). His latest feat comes six months after scoring a 3rd round knockout of Luis Alberto Rios on the DAZN undercard of Jaime Munguia’s middleweight debut this past January in San Antonio, Texas.

The bout served in supporting capacity to the evening’s headlining act between unbeaten welterweight Vergil Ortiz Jr. (15-0, 15KOs) and Canada’s Samuel Vargas (31-5-2, 14KOs).

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox