By Nick BellafattoThere’s no denying that undefeated WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (46-0-1, 32 KO’s) has undergone a remarkable transformation, progressing from a one dimensional come forward wannabe slugger identical in style to his shorter legendary father Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., to that of a semi skilled boxer who can stick and move fairly well.
Along with a supposedly sturdy set of whiskers, Jr.’s current ring attributes combined with him contesting universally recognized middleweight kingpin Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez (49-2-2, 28 KO’s) as the much bigger man is what has many observers favoring the Mexican to pull off the victory. This in a bout considered one of the more significant to take place at 160 pounds in quite some time.
A revelation to be sure in that just a few fights ago nobody would have seriously given Chavez Jr. a chance at all, much less consider him to be competitive against an elite fighter such as Martinez. I myself consider Julio’s chances quite slim, as opposed to what many other’s believe. Suffice it to say though, the build up to this event has fight fans salivating, and why not?
Moreover, in what is to be a sold out venue at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, what makes for a totally intriguing match up are the game plans that each man has verbally committed to deploy. In the case of Martinez, he feels there is no reason to fight any differently than he has in the past. “I fought all 53 of my fights with my hands down. I did it with Paul Williams. I did it with Kelly Pavlik. Why not with Chavez? What will be the difference? I will do it again with my hands down.”
Sergio would continue. “If he comes to prove that he’s the stronger man against me, and if he wants to try to prove his power against me, then I welcome that. That will make it a much easier fight for me than if he tries to move around the ring. But in the end, Chavez Jr. will look the same way as my last few opponents. I will really punish him. And by the 10th or the 11th round I will knock him out.”
On the other end of the spectrum the so called defending champion has alluded to putting constant pressure on Martinez, as he looks to limit the challenger in more ways than one. “He uses his jab a lot with movement and spacing. I’m not going to give him any space. The more he moves and steps side to side, the more difficult the fight is for me.”
Chavez Jr. would elaborate further. “I have to make him fight every minute of every round. If you let him do what he wants and slow the fight down, it’s going to be a difficult night. You have to heighten the pace, keep him busy,” and “go to the body with Sergio because I notice he doesn’t like to get hit there.”
In my eyes the factors considered to be in favor of young Julio, size and a tough beard, will only prove to make him a considerably larger target, as well as serve to keep him upright where he will be on the receiving end of his opponents wrath for a longer period, as opposed to the prospect of getting mercifully stopped or kayoed by Martinez early on. It remains to be seen what will transpire once the bell rings, but there can be no doubt that Chavez Jr. is in for the fight of his life as compared to that of his 48 previous opponents.
And for Martinez, who will be charged emotionally stating he’s going to knock Julio out late, the Argentine may very well be pressed early on as Julio has alluded to, which will no doubt force the challenger’s hand. And this is where it get’s tricky for the Mexican fighter. Will his chin really hold up as many surmise, or will he stumble in to a knockout blow? Will the ring size favor a roaming Martinez, or will the extent of the squared circle accommodate a pressing Chavez Jr.? Perhaps a source of contention in what will be a heated affair.
We shall see how things play out in the theater of the unexpected, but quite possibly Martinez will in fact need to land the knockout blow considering who he’s fighting, where he’s fighting. With Sergio unfortunately not having much of a fan base to begin with despite being a supremely talented fighter, he’ll be going into the lion’s den so to speak when he takes on Chavez Jr. in Las Vegas, where traditionally Mexican fans fill the stands on what will in addition be Mexican Independence Day weekend. That is to say, going to a decision may not in the best interest of the Argentinian.
Come what may, it seems that finally the day of reckoning is here. Does Martinez come away like a Bob Fitzsimmons, or a Roy Jones Jr., to handily defeat an opponent considerably larger than he, or does Chavez Jr. put an end to all the talk which has made a mockery of the sport? Has Julio developed the mental fortitude to deal with an opponent like no other after reportedly disappearing for days at a time from training camp, or are Martinez’s last few performances indicative of a him beginning to physically decline at age 37?
This Saturday night each man has a chance to set the record straight as it all comes to a head. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. vs. Sergio Gabriel Martinez, live from Las Vegas, Nevada’s Thomas and Mack Center on HBO Pay Per View, 9PM ET/6PM PT, with the co-main event to feature two-time Cuban Olympic Gold Medalist and undefeated Guillermo “El Chacal” Rigondeaux (10-0, 8 KO’s), as he takes on Texas native Roberto Marroquin (22-1, 15 KO’s) in defense of his WBA junior featherweight title.
Rigondeaux, who’s been on no less than a tear lately, looks to continue his winning ways with the eventual hope that he will one day clash with unified titlist and pound-for-pound sensation Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire, in what would be the biggest fight at junior featherweight in more than a while.
Update: For the record I would like to note that in Part I of this article I mentioned that Sergio Martinez was to receive no portion of the pay per view revenue, which was true when I began writing. However, in the last few days Sergio has come to terms in that regard, although reportedly his share is minuscule as compared to that of Chavez Jr.
