Julio César Chávez Jr.

Julio César Chávez Carrasco (born February 16, 1986), best known as Julio César Chávez Jr., is a Mexican professional boxer who held the WBC middleweight title from 2011 to 2012.^[1] He is the son of retired six-time world boxing champion Julio César Chávez and older brother of Omar Chávez.^[2]

Personal life

Chávez Jr. was born in the city of Sinaloa,^[3][4] when his father held the WBC World Championship at super featherweight. His face became known to boxing fans when his father would take him and his brother Omar into the ring as children, before each of Chávez Sr.'s fights. As a teenager, Chávez Jr. endured some difficult moments, including a publicized relationship between his father and actress Salma Hayek and the consequential divorce of his parents.^[5] Chávez Jr. lived in relative obscurity until he announced that he would follow in the footsteps of his father and become a boxer.^[6]

On part of his career Chávez Jr. has struggled with discipline issues such as training properly, reaching the right weight before his fights and his alleged use of illegal substances. On February, 2014, Chávez and his girlfriend welcomed their first daughter, Julia.

Amateur career

Chávez's amateur career consisted of only two fights against former world champion Jorge Páez's oldest son Jorge Páez Jr.; both of the exhibitions bouts were shown on Mexican television.^[7]

Professional career

After those amateur fights, Chavez Jr. started his professional boxing career at 17 years old.^[8] On September 26, 2003, at Super Featherweight (130 lbs), he won his professional debut by outpointing Jonathan Hernandez over six rounds in Chávez Jr.'s native Culiacán, Sinaloa. Chavez Jr. is signed with Bob Arum's Top Rank.^[9] Many of his fights have been held during boxing programs that have been headed by his father; he has also been featured on the undercards of many major pay-per-view fights (rare for an up-and-coming fighter, but not unexpected in his case given his father's fame). He is considerably taller than his father.^[10] Chávez Jr. set a fighting pace that was reminiscent of Chávez Sr.'s own pace when the latter was a younger man: in 2004, he fought eleven times, not having a fight only in August during that year.

Chavez won by a split decision over Matt Vanda July 12, 2008. Scores for the fight were 97–93 and 100–90, while losing 96–95 on another card.^[11] Chavez struggled with making weight for several bouts and was suspended following his win over Troy Rowland for using a banned diuretic, furosemide, to make the 160-pound weight limit. As a result, the fight was changed to a no contest.^[12]

On June 26, 2010, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Chavez Jr. had a win against John Duddy, in what many regard as his first serious fight.^[13]

In December 2010, Alfonso Gomez was signed to match up against the undefeated Chávez Jr. at middleweight (the contracted weight was 157) for Chavez Jr's WBC Silver Middleweight belt on the In Harm's Way card as the main event. However, during training for the bout, Alfonso tore some ligaments in his left elbow and had to withdraw from the card and undergo a few months of rehab. For his part, Chavez Jr was set to fight Paweł Wolak as a replacement bout, but after adjusting the weight limit for said match to 165 lbs, Chavez Jr had to pull out due to the flu messing up his training and weight loss and then in January he went on to beat title contender Billy Lyell.^[14]

Middleweight

On June 4, 2011, Chávez defeated WBC Middleweight Champion Sebastian Zbik to win his first world title at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, taking a major step toward establishing his own legacy while his famous father looked on. He was behind early against Zbik, who was the quicker fighter and landed more punches early. But Chavez kept coming forward, countering with hard body shots that seemed to slow his German opponent down.^[15]

Chavez Jr. defended his Middleweight title with a fifth-round knockout of Peter Manfredo Jr. in Houston on November 19, 2011.

Chavez was marginally outworked, but he landed a higher percentage of punches and more power shots than Manfredo. In the fifth round, Chavez hurt Manfredo with a hard right hand and unloaded a flurry when the challenger wobbled and backed up on the ropes. Manfredo was never hit flush as Chavez threw with abandon, but he didn't answer with any punches and referee Laurence Cole finally stepped in to call it at 1 minutes, 52 seconds.^[16]

On February 4, 2012, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, Chavez faced Mexican countryman Marco Antonio Rubio in a 12-round scheduled championship Middleweight bout.^[17] Chavez Jr. retained his WBC Middleweight title after beating Rubio by a unanimous decision. Chavez bossed the majority of the exchanges and was awarded the fight 118-110 116-112 115-113 on the judges' scorecards. Two weeks before the fight, Chavez was arrested in Los Angeles on charges of drunk driving.^[18]

Chávez vs. Lee

On June 16, 2012, at the University of Texas at El Paso, Sunbowl in El Paso, Texas. Chavez Jr. recovered from a slow start he blamed on leg cramps and stopped Andy Lee at 2:21 of the seventh round to retain the WBC Middleweight title. A right uppercut by Chavez snapped Lee's head upwards and sideways and Chavez connected on a barrage of punches before referee Laurence Cole intervened and waved an end to the fight.

With the victory, Chavez put himself in position for a title-unification fight with recognized World Middleweight Champion Sergio Martinez.

Chávez vs. Martínez

Chávez fought against Sergio Martínez on September 15, 2012, at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas for the Unified WBC and The Ring Middleweight Championship.

Martínez outworked and out-landed Chávez throughout the first 11 rounds of the fight in dominating fashion. Though Chávez had his moments, trapping Martínez in the corner on the ropes, Martínez fought Chávez and used his fast lateral movement to avoid and neutralize Chávez's offensive attack. After 11 dominant rounds from Martinez, Chávez hurt Martínez in the twelfth round, sending him to the canvas half way through the round. Martínez got up with a little over one minute left in the fight and continued to throw and trade with the Mexican champion, despite being fatigued and clearly hurt. Martínez managed to survive the 12th round. Martínez won the fight by unanimous decision, by the scores of 117–110, 118–109 and 118-109. It was later revealed that Martinez had fought with a broken left hand since the fourth round.^[19][20]

After the fight, Chavez tested positive for cannabis.^[21] On February 28, 2013, the Nevada State Athletic Commission suspended him for nine months and fined him $900,000. Chavez had been already fined $20,000 and suspended indefinitely by the World Boxing Council.^[22]

Chávez vs. Vera I & II

After a year of suspension, Chávez faced Brian Vera on September 28, 2013 at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. Chávez struggled with the weight before the fight and he hardly reached the 172 pounds for a fight pacted in 168 pounds. The night of the fight he weighed 186 pounds. Like the fight against Martínez, Chávez threw very few power punches while Vera dominated the fight. In the late rounds, the face of Chávez was swollen and he had a cut on his nose, while Vera's face hardly showed any signs of damage. Chávez won a controversial unanimous decision. He threw 320 punches, while Vera threw 734. The decision was heavily criticized by the audience. After the fight, Chávez stated that he fought with an injured hand.

A rematch was held on March the 1st, 2014, at the Alamodome of San Antonio, Texas. Contrary to what happened in the first fight, Chávez came out more aggressive and proposed the fight. He kept the distance with the jab and landed power punches. In the eleventh round he landed a powerful right hand that nearly knocked Vera out. Chávez won via unanimous decision.

Chavez vs. Fonfara

After a long break from boxing, Chavez Jr. decided to face Andrzej Fonfara, a bout in which Chavez was dominated and dropped by a left hook to the forehead in the 9th round. Before the 10th round begun Chavez told his corner "Stop the fight" making it his first TKO in his career. After fight Chavez said "Yes, I think I won the fight". Some words were lost in translation; he meant to say he felt he was winning the fight at early stages of the bout. Chavez was behind in all three judges score cards at the time of the stoppage.

Professional boxing record

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
54	N/A	N/A	Dominik Britsch	N/A	–	Dec 10, 2016	Monterrey, Mexico
53	Win	49–2–1 (1)	Marcos Reyes	UD	10	Jul 18, 2015	Don Haskins Center, El Paso, Texas, U.S.
52	Loss	48–2–1 (1)	Andrzej Fonfara	RTD	9 (12), 3:00	Apr 18, 2015	StubHub Center, Carson, California, U.S.	For vacant WBC International light heavyweight title
51	Win	48–1–1 (1)	Brian Vera	UD	12	Mar 1, 2014	Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.	Won vacant WBC Continental Americas super middleweight title
50	Win	47–1–1 (1)	Brian Vera	UD	10	Sep 28, 2013	StubHub Center, Carson, California, U.S.
49	Loss	46–1–1 (1)	Sergio Martínez	UD	12	Sep 15, 2012	Thomas & Mack Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.	Lost WBC middleweight title; For The Ring and lineal middleweight titles
48	Win	46–0–1 (1)	Andy Lee	TKO	7 (12), 2:21	Jun 16, 2012	Sun Bowl, El Paso, Texas, U.S.	Retained WBC middleweight title
47	Win	45–0–1 (1)	Marco Antonio Rubio	UD	12	Feb 4, 2012	Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.	Retained WBC middleweight title
46	Win	44–0–1 (1)	Peter Manfredo Jr.	TKO	5 (12), 1:52	Nov 19, 2011	Reliant Arena, Houston, Texas, U.S.	Retained WBC middleweight title
45	Win	43–0–1 (1)	Sebastian Zbik	MD	12	Jun 4, 2011	Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, U.S.	Won vacant WBC middleweight title
44	Win	42–0–1 (1)	Billy Lyell	UD	10	Jan 29, 2011	Estadio Banorte, Culiacán, Mexico	Retained WBC Silver middleweight title
43	Win	41–0–1 (1)	John Duddy	UD	12	Jun 26, 2010	Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.	Won vacant WBC Silver middleweight title
42	NC	40–0–1 (1)	Troy Rowland	UD	10	Nov 14, 2009	MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.	Originally a UD win for Chávez Jr., later ruled an NC after he failed a drug test
41	Win	40–0–1	Jason LeHoullier	TKO	1 (10), 2:43	Sep 12, 2009	Palenque de La Feria, Tepic, Mexico	Retained WBC Latino super welterweight title
40	Win	39–0–1	Luciano Cuello	UD	10	Mar 28, 2009	Bullring by the Sea, Tijuana, Mexico	Won WBC Latino super welterweight title
39	Win	38–0–1	Matt Vanda	UD	10	Sep 1, 2008	Mandalay Bay Events Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
38	Win	37–0–1	Matt Vanda	SD	10	Jul 12, 2008	Palenque ExpoGan, Hermosillo, Mexico
37	Win	36–0–1	Tobia Giuseppe Loriga	KO	9 (10), 1:47	Apr 26, 2008	Plaza de Toros Santa María, Querétaro City, Mexico	Retained WBC Continental Americas super welterweight title
36	Win	35–0–1	José Celaya	TKO	8 (12), 2:14	Feb 9, 2008	Domo de la Feria, León, Mexico	Won WBC Continental Americas super welterweight title
35	Win	34–0–1	Ray Sánchez	KO	6 (10), 1:33	Dec 1, 2007	Tingley Coliseum, Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.
34	Win	33–0–1	Louis Brown	TKO	5 (10), 2:42	Aug 4, 2007	Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois, U.S.
33	Win	32–0–1	Grover Wiley	KO	3 (10), 2:27	Jun 9, 2007	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S.
32	Win	31–0–1	Anthony Shuler	KO	2 (10), 1:32	Apr 14, 2007	Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
31	Win	30–0–1	Raúl Jorge Muñoz	TKO	3 (10), 1:29	Mar 9, 2007	Dodge Arena, Hidalgo, Texas, U.S.
30	Win	29–0–1	Christian Solano	UD	10	Dec 16, 2006	Plaza de Toros, Culiacán, Mexico
29	Win	28–0–1	Shad Howard	RTD	4 (8), 0:10	Sep 23, 2006	Dodge Arena, Hidalgo, Texas, U.S.
28	Win	27–0–1	Jermaine White	TKO	4 (10), 1:52	Aug 19, 2006	Don Haskins Center, El Paso, Texas, U.S.	Won vacant WBC Youth super welterweight title
27	Win	26–0–1	Aaron Drake	TKO	2 (6), 1:53	Jun 10, 2006	Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S.
26	Win	25–0–1	Tyler Ziolkowski	KO	2 (6), 2:40	Mar 8, 2006	Thomas & Mack Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
25	Win	24–0–1	Carlos Molina	MD	6	Feb 18, 2006	The New Aladdin, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
24	Draw	23–0–1	Carlos Molina	PTS	6	Dec 16, 2005	Monterrey Arena, Monterrey, Mexico
23	Win	23–0	Jeremy Stiers	TKO	5 (6), 0:47	Oct 8, 2005	Thomas & Mack Center, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
22	Win	22–0	Corey Alarcon	TKO	2 (6), 0:35	Sep 17, 2005	America West Arena, Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
21	Win	21–0	Jonathan Nelson	KO	1 (6), 0:54	Aug 12, 2005	Entertainment Center, Laredo, Texas, U.S.
20	Win	20–0	Rubén Galván	TKO	4 (8), 2:22	Jun 25, 2005	Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
19	Win	19–0	Adam Wynant	KO	1 (6), 0:42	May 28, 2005	Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
18	Win	18–0	Travis Hartman	TKO	3 (8), 0:51	Apr 22, 2005	Dodge Arena, Hidalgo, Texas, U.S.
17	Win	17–0	Ryan Maraldo	TKO	3 (6), 2:56	Mar 19, 2005	MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
16	Win	16–0	Leroy Newton	TKO	1 (6), 2:11	Feb 11, 2005	Convention Center, San Diego, California, U.S.
15	Win	15–0	Jose Cruz	TKO	2 (8)	Jan 21, 2005	Parque Revolución, Culiacán, Mexico
14	Win	14–0	Eliseo Urias	KO	2 (6)	Dec 18, 2004	Autonomous University of Sinaloa, Culiacán, Mexico
13	Win	13–0	Sheldon Mosley	TKO	5 (6)	Nov 26, 2004	Poliforo Juan Gabriel, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico
12	Win	12–0	Mike Walker	TKO	1 (6), 2:21	Oct 23, 2004	Desert Diamond Casino, Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
11	Win	11–0	Miguel Galindo	TKO	4 (6)	Sep 4, 2004	Bullring by the Sea, Tijuana, Mexico
10	Win	10–0	Jason Smith	UD	4	Jul 31, 2004	MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
9	Win	9–0	Jose Luis Huerta	TKO	2 (6), 0:52	Jun 26, 2004	Parque Revolución, Culiacán, Mexico
8	Win	8–0	Antonio Aguilar	KO	1 (4), 1:10	May 22, 2004	Plaza de Toros, Mexico City, Mexico
7	Win	7–0	Arturo Ocampo	KO	2 (6)	Apr 24, 2004	Palenque de Gallos Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Mexico
6	Win	6–0	Guadalupe Arce	KO	1 (4), 2:10	Mar 27, 2004	Auditorio Municipal, Tijuana, Mexico
5	Win	5–0	Oisin Fagan	UD	4	Feb 28, 2004	MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
4	Win	4–0	Jose Burgos	UD	4	Jan 29, 2004	International Ballroom, Houston, Texas, U.S.
3	Win	3–0	Gerardo Penaflor	UD	4	Dec 5, 2003	International Ballroom, Houston, Texas, U.S.
2	Win	2–0	Eugene Johnson	KO	1 (4)	Nov 22, 2003	Centro de Espectáculos Alamar, Tijuana, Mexico
1	Win	1–0	Jonathan Hernandez	UD	4	Sep 26, 2003	Parque Revolución, Culiacán, Mexico	Professional debut

Titles in boxing

Trainers

Chavez has been trained by two of his uncles, who have been criticized for not putting their foot down with the young fighter in terms of discipline. Chavez needed more motivation and guidance so he switched from his uncles to famous Freddie Roach to his corner.^[23]

See also

• List of Mexican boxing world champions
• Notable boxing families
• List of WBC world champions
• List of middleweight boxing champions

References

External links

• Official website
• Julio César Chávez Jr. at the Internet Movie Database
• Professional boxing record for Julio César Chávez Jr. from BoxRec