By Ian S Palmer
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. of Mexico returns to the ring this Saturday, April 18 when he takes on Andrzej Fonfara of Poland at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. The 12-round light heavyweight bout can be seen live in the U.S. on Showtime. This is Chavez’s first fight since beating Brian Vera last March. The bout is for the vacant WBC International Light Heavyweight title.
The 29-year-old Chavez will enter the ring with an impressive record of 48-1-1 along with 32 Kos. His only loss was a unanimous decision to former WBC Middleweight Champion Sergio Martinez of Argentina. However, Chavez had Martinez down and in deep trouble in the last round before the bell arguably saved him. The 27-year-old Fonfara is 26-3 and has 15 Kos to his name. His losses have come against Derrick Findley, Eberto Medina and Adonis Stevenson. Fonfara had Stevenson down in their 2014 tile, but dropped a decision.
Chavez has moved up to the 175 lb light heavyweight division after having trouble making the weight in the super middleweight division. However, this bout is reportedly being held at a catch weight of 172 lbs. Chavez also climbs back into the ring under the Showtime banner rather than HBO and has hired Joe Goosen as his new trainer. Chavez has a tough opponent in front of him in Fonfara and can’t take him lightly, but a win here could already put him in line for a shot at one of the light heavyweight titles in the near future.
Fonfara’s a determined and tough fighter with a pretty good right hand. He’s got decent power as well as a solid chin even though Stevenson decked him a couple of times last May. Fonfara then dropped Stevenson in the ninth round, but fell short on the judges’ scorecards. He’ll need to produce the same type of effort here if he hopes on beating Chavez. Fonfara is close t0 6-feet-3-inches tall with a 76-inch reach and has 139 gone rounds since turning pro in 2006. Chavez is 6-foot-1 with a 73-inch reach and has 204 rounds under his belt since turning pro in 2003.
Fonfara needs to use his slight reach advantage and control the distance against the hard-hitting Chavez. He needs to make sure he uses his jab and doesn’t get enticed into a brawl. Chavez is a powerful boxer with a solid chin and is hard to keep at bay though. He’ll apply the pressure to the body and head and keep moving forward until he eventually breaks his opponent down.
Prediction
Fonfara was stopped n the second round by Derrick Findley back in 2008, but he’s improved quite a bit since then. However, he’s up against another legitimate contender here in Chavez, who is arguably better than Stevenson. Fonfara may get off to a good start due to his height and reach advantages, but sooner or later Chavez will wear him down enough to take a relatively clear decision or late stoppage.
