Can Chavez Jr. add some upset to his story?

“The kids weren’t good at listening to elders, but they never failed to imitate them.” – James Baldwin.

…

Having a father, a national hero, is challenging. Your father is undoubtedly the greatest boxer in Mexican history, and when you enter a family business, the weight of expectations is immeasurable.

June 28th, Julio César Chávez Jr. (54-6-1, 34 KOs) will draw social media people and become boxer Jake Paul (11-1, 7 KOs) to host Paul’s latest competition in Anaheim, California.

Chávez Jr. There is a name recognition, but this is not a step up in the race for Jake Paul to do it. Paul certainly faces former world champions and “someone who Canelo couldn’t knock out,” but since 2015 (or when Jake Paul finished filming the film Duns Camp), Chavez Jr.’s records are only 6-5.

In a way, it’s appropriate that Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. is in this position to protect boxing’s honor against Jake Paul, a social media star who has been as successful as boxing has a social media algorithm. Chavez Jr. was born in a boxing-crazed country and fathered by sports legends. Chavez Jr.’s career was disappointing, but if Chavez Jr. can defeat Jake Paul definitively, he will become a folk hero in several circles.

The boxing public is watching Chavez Jr. grow. He and his brother, Omar, came to the ring with his father towards the end of his career. How did you get to this point with Giulio Cávez Jr.?

…

Julio César Chávez Jr. was born on February 16, 1986, when his father was the WBC Super Flyweight Champion. Being a teenager is hard for everyone, and Chavez Jr.’s teenage years were no exception. As he says, from the age of 12, “(My father) will pay $20 to fight me, bringing bigger, stronger children with him than he would wander on the streets or working for $3 or $5 in a supermarket. In addition to spending time hiring young Mexicans, his father had a significant relationship with actress Salma Hayek, which ultimately led to his parents’ divorce.

Chavez Jr.’s official amateur career was essentially getting money. He only had two amateur fights on Mexican television against fellow Mexican son Jorge Peace Jr., both of whom had only had the amateur fights shown on Mexican television. Chavez Jr. played his first professional battle in September 2003.

In 2004, during his first year as a professional, he fought 11th round. Chávez Sr. fought 12 each in his first two professional years in 1981 and 1982. Chávez Jr. For over 25 months in his professional career, “The Legendary Son” fought once every 32 days.

Former trainer Freddie Roach characterized Chavez Jr.’s early style as follows: “He was trying to be like his father. He was a bit nasty with it. He wasn’t like a natural athlete like his father, and when you taught him something, he had to take it slowly.”

…

In November 2009, after his victory in Troy Roland, Chavez Jr. was stopped by gaining weight using reduced diuretics, and his victory was overturned and dominated the non-contest. What Chavez Jr. had with substance abuse wasn’t the last thing he had, but another way he followed his father’s footsteps.

After beating Marco Antonio Rubio in February 2012, Chavez Jr. was arrested in Los Angeles on drunk driving charges.

Despite the construction disruption, Chavez Jr. had no first defeat in September 2012 against middleweight Sergio Martinez. The fight was memorable, with Martinez dominating the first 11 rounds until Chavez Jr. scored a knockdown and nearly took victory from the jaws of defeat.

It reminded me when Giulio Cesar Chavez remembered Meldric Taylor with the remaining two seconds in the unification match of the 1990 junior welterweight title. Chavez Jr.’s battle with Sergio Martinez was the last time he fought for the World Championship. After his fight with Martinez, Chavez Jr. was fined and suspended after testing a cannabis test.

…

After returning from his suspension, Chavez Jr. moved to super middleweight for a battle with Brian Bella in September 2013. He well above the 168 pound limit and weighed at 172 pounds. He defeated Bella in points that night and again in March 2014 in a rematch.

At that point, Chavez Jr. took a break from boxing and returned 13 months later to Andrze Fonfara in the light heavyweight division. Chávez Jr. was ruled by Fonfara and suffered a second loss of his career. The fight ended when Chavez Jr. didn’t leave his horn after the ninth round.

Chavez Jr., who fought Marcos Reyes again a few months later, decided to return to his victory column. Chavez Jr. won, but the match had to be changed to a 170-pound catchweight the night before, as Chavez Jr. was unable to create a contractual mandatory weight of 168 pounds.

…

Next was the most notable and most growing battle of Julio Sázer Chavez Jr.’s career. The match took place in 2016 when he fought Canelo Alvarez on Cinco de Mayo weekend. Cinco de Mayo weekends usually feature battles with top Mexican boxers. It seemed like an interesting match when Canelo Alvarez agreed to face off against Giulio Cesar Chavez Jr. Two big names, with contrasting styles with family charm, faced in a battle that was billed as a Mexican showdown. On the night of the battle, this was not what happened. Chávez Jr. was a pathetic performance against Canelo, throwing 71 of 302 punches and losing all rounds on all three scorecards. Pay-per-view generated nearly 1.2 million purchases.

Chávez Jr. did not return to the ring for another 27 months. When he did that, Chavez Jr. did a quick job with Ebert Bravo (26-14-1) and won in just 98 seconds. Immensely, for his next fight, Chavez Jr. faced the sturdy and talented Daniel Jacobs.

In December 2019, Daniel Jacobs crushed Chavez Jr. The crowd in Phoenix, Arizona, was not happy with Chavez Jr., and in a chaotic and embarrassing scene, they showed rain and beer in the ring with rain and beer.

To make things worse for Chavez Jr., he was stopped after a loss after refusing to undergo pre-war drug testing. It was Chavez Jr.’s final battle against top-level boxers.

…

Over the past four years, Chávez Jr. only boxed three times, two of whom came to the mixed artists of their careers. In his only general opponent with Jake Paul, Chavez Jr. lost his 2021 decision to Anderson Silva. Chavez Jr. returned to his victory column with Peru’s David Zegara later that year. Zegarra is primarily a boxer, but he is currently in the middle of an 11 consecutive win.

In January 2024, Chavez Jr. joined the housing treatment program after being arrested in Los Angeles on three felony gun possession charges. According to police, he had illegally owned two AR-style ghost rifles.

In his latest match, Chavez Jr. defeated Ulia Hall last July. Chavez Jr. weighed at 197.75 pounds before the heaviest fight of his career. Following his point victory over Hall, the crowd booed Chavez Jr. when he called out Jake Paul.

…

Julio César Chávez Jr. was born into a difficult position. Julio’s brother Omar also followed in his father’s footsteps and became a professional boxer. Omar did not reach the highs or lows his brother has in his career. Omar’s boxing career is notable for three separate retirements and gambling addiction.

In July 2015, Chavez Jr. wrote an article for the Player Tribune, which is fascinating to read nearly a decade later. It reads partially:

I wouldn’t be a boxer today without my father…but imagine for a moment that he is not my father. He is still a sport legend and one of the greatest in history, but we don’t share the same name. Do you still compare me to him? Do you put my records and my achievements next to him and say I am inadequate? If he’s not my father, is that a fair comparison?

…

So how does Julio Sázer Chavez Sr. see his son carrying Jake Paul? Last month, Elder Chavez said: “I have never seen a train at this level in many years. If he keeps this up until the fight, there’s no way for Jake Paul to take down my son.”

Call that wishcast, a paranoia, or whatever you want, but Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. doesn’t let his father down for better or worse.