I don’t think that Battle of the Heroes would work for the Obi-Wan Vader duel in A New Hope. It’s just an old guy and a slightly younger guy in a suit hitting each other with laser sword — it’s not very dramatic, as say the duel in ROTS. Plus, Battle of the Heroes is a pretty weak theme anyway.
I think it works alright, not great, but I think it livens up the fight for sure.
Yeah, I think it works better without the music.