When first reported that Canelo Alvarez would square up against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., fight fans grunted in anger labeling the fight a mismatch. Fans and experts cried that Canelo will toy with Junior and knock him out.
But then about a week ago or so, news that the great Nacho Beristein would be training Julio broke and I noticed those fans that were screaming mismatch began to back pedal from their early prediction. I am sure the reason boxing fans changed stances on the bout was Nacho’s sharp mind and instinctive no bs’ing ways of preparing a fighter for war.
Legendary trainer Nacho Beristein must first aim to have Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (50-2-1, 32 KOs) on target to make the 164 ½ pound catch-weight for his monster clash against Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (48-1-1, 34 KOs) on May 6 which will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Boxing talks says that Chavez Jr. is currently sitting in the neighborhood of 180 pounds. So as it stands, Julio is on track to make weight come Cinco De Mayo as he steps foot onto that dreadful scale.
Making weight has always been a tough battle for Julio. Reports and accounts say that when Julio is not training, his natural walk around weight is a few pounds north of 200. So what that tells me is that here is a fighter who has basically treated fight camps as weight loss challenges instead of training the mind on strategies, and the body to be in the best shape possible.
Canelo also has challenges with weight and his thick stocky build. Eyes don’t tell lies and my eyes tell me that getting down to his normal fighting weight of 155 pounds is a bit taxing. Obviously Canelo will have no problem making the 164 ½ contracted weight but mentally and physically how will he deal with being the smaller man come fight night.
Thus far, Canelo has had the advantages of being the bigger stronger fighter walking down and at times, counter punching his prey. But in this fight against Chavez Jr., Canelo will be forced into spots where he’s going to have to work and push hard to keep the heavier fighter off of him.
For a fighter with stamina issues that loves to rely on the ropes to steal some breaths, on the ropes against a heavier hard punching fighter is the last place Canelo will want to be.
So do you go for the quicker hard hitting boxer with a sharper mind in Canelo. Or do you go for the heavier and heavy handed fighter with a whole lot to prove brawler in Chavez Jr?
For me, it’s going to come down to the better conditioned fighter come fight night. Because in a fight where weight can dictate, the amount of gas left in the tank will be more crucial for both fighters than ever before. It will definitely be a battle of attrition and fighting will.
But let’s hear from you the fight fans, who do you got and how do you see the fight going?