Nepotism is alive and well. Like a modern day Caste system, some still walk around with a propped-up smile courtesy of a silver spoon. In this case, it's a silver glove.
Although his detractors at least appear to be fading out, Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. will be continue to be subjected to unfair yet warranted scrutiny for quite a while. This past Saturday night at Reliant Arena in Houston, Texas, many fans in the building were more excited at the sight of his father, Julio, Sr. than they were of Little Julio, who was part of the evening's main event. It's of no fault to Junior himself that he may always be tagged as son first and average to sufficient fighter second. The feeling is that some fans are willing to tag along for the time being. They want to be there and be part of it all in case true glory occurs (in the eyes of the boxing world), but they won't wait around forever. It's easier to grab hold of the fervor right now just so you can say that you were there from the beginning when and if he actually gives you the fight for which you're dying to see.
Allow us to quickly examine the obvious.
He's not his father. Not by far sight. He's a different breed. Julio, Sr. came from abject poverty in Culiacan, Mexico and became a national hero. Not much has changed, as he's still as beloved as ever. He was also promoted by Don King. Julio, Jr. is considerably taller and he's a completely different fighter. Dad would please the crowd by taking oceans of punishment and then grinding away a victory in a match of grit and determination. The son does not fight in this fashion, perhaps deliberately. He uses his height and has developed an effective jab. He had no amateur background, but he's making up for the lack of experience by way of having the best trainer in the business in his corner.
Freddie Roach has helped Julio, Jr. come a long way, comparatively speaking in a short amount of time. Still, the multitudes won't be satiated until he really and truly "fights" someone.
The match to die for in the opinions of many is Julio, Jr. versus Saul "Canelo" Alvarez. Sinaloa versus Jalisco. Don't hold your breath. Just yet. Julio, Jr. is handled by Bob Arum, who through his own admission feels the son of the legend isn't ready for the biggest bite of the pie. Canelo didn't have the longest amateur career himself, but more than one pundit feels this bout is already a mismatch. Despite his three inch height and two inch reach advantage, Junior is not ready for the jump, at least not in the view of his promoter.
Were it up to Julio (as he leads us to believe), he'd set up the pylons in the parking lot and ask us to switch on our headlights. It's this type of fervor that gets the paying customers excited, yet it's a stark contrast when his boss is asked the same questions. Arum is a businessman. Yes, he'd like to give us the best available fights, provided it can be as close to win-win as possible.
Julio tells us that he fears no opposition. One of his quotes at the post-fight press conference late Saturday night in regard to the Canelo showdown was concerning the issue of weight. "His camp is asking for too many concessions. They're asking me to come down to 156 pounds and my body just won't allow that."
Another boxer who could be waiting in the wings is middleweight king Sergio Martinez of Argentina. "Maravilla" Martinez stopped short of hopping into the ring on Saturday night after Julio, Jr.'s fifth round TKO victory over Peter Manfredo, Jr. and openly challenging him. Martinez may have doused the flames of anticipation for this fight when he openly stated that Chavez will never be ready to face him.
So, for the time being we'll just have to wait and see what the future holds. The most interesting prospect will be when Junior loses for the first time. Bob Arum is once again relying on his instincts and the cunning that has kept him in business for upwards of forty years. Some call it outright guile. The fighter is always product first and athlete second. As Julio, Jr. continues to rack up win after win against what many feel are bums, tomato cans or whatever the term of the week is, a large group of supporters is proudly along for the ride. They know he's not his dad. Once he loses, they'll say without any reservation that they knew this from day one.
(Photos courtesy of Adrian Hernandez)
