The long awaited return of Mexican super-middleweight Julio Cesar Chavez Jr (49-2-1, 32 KO’s) looks set to be over shortly.
ESPN Deportes have revealed that a potential match up against J’Leon Love (22-1, 12 KO’s) is set for August 27th, although not officially announced yet.
As the son of possibly the greatest Mexican fighter of all time (Julio Cesar Chavez, with an incredible 107 wins and 86 knockouts to his name) Chavez Jr has not quite delivered to the expectation of his nation with recent performances not being representative of Jr’s obvious talent and pedigree.
A humbling loss to Andrzej Fonfara (28-4, 16 KO’s) where the Polish light-heavyweight was dominant throughout, outworking Chavez Jr for nine rounds and forcing Chavez Jr to quit on his stool in the 10th followed by an unsatisfying decision victory over fellow countryman Marcos Reyes (33-3, 24 KO’s), has seen Chavez Jr stock fall over the past few years.
At 30 years old, this has to be the last shot at realising his potential and truly establishing himself as a key player in the super-middleweight division.
Chavez Jr has struggled with weight before and has not made the 168lbs limit since his March 2014 victory against Brian Vera (23-11, 14 KO’s) but after an unsuccessful spell at super-welterweight, he will potentially decide to meet Love at the 168 pound limit.
All eyes will be on Chavez Jr in the build-up to the late summer match up and the jury is out whether Julio will fully commit to this fight.
Early year cancellation of a proposed fight with WBC king Badou Jack (20-1-2, 12 KO’s) due to a heel injury and recent training camp mysteries where Chavez Snr questioned his son’s commitment publicly, have not helped the fighter’s public image in Mexico.
However changes in Chavez Jr’s training team see him revert to the safe hands of Freddie Roach which will put him in good stead for the August date.
The pair training together in the past (credit: JCChavezjr.com):
Chavez Jr worked with Roach in the most successful period of his career but left the Wildcard stable after deciding to join Al Haymon under the Premier Boxing Champions banner and has said his renewed relationship with Roach is now stronger than ever.
For J’Leon Love this is a fantastic opportunity to put a top level name onto his record and couldn’t pick a better time to face Chavez Jr.
Love who fights out of the Mayweather gym in Las Vegas, is himself looking to establish his name in the super-middleweight division.
With the four championship belts spread across four fighters, there will be a number of options for both boxers as a good performance will surely springboard them onto title discussions.
In a sparkling division with a number of top contenders waiting in the wings to challenge for top honours, the return of Chavez Jr is warmly welcomed and adds an interesting dynamic to the super-middleweight scene.
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