Someone has kidnapped the real Bob Arum and stored him in some abandoned warehouse because the new Bob Arum is willing to put one of his cash cows, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., in the ring with the dangerous Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (37-0-1, 27 KOs). Perhaps he has learned his lesson and is scared that when Jr. (43-0-1, 30 KOs) gets exposed before he fights Alvarez, he’ll lose a ton of money. It’s a great move because a Chavez – Alvarez fight will be very profitable in Mexico. It also redeems Arum of his Juan Manuel Lopez – Yuriorkis Gamboa debacle.
Alvarez’s promoter, Golden Boy Promotions, may be rushing into this. Alvarez has a high ceiling and enormous potential. Unlike Jr., he is the real deal. The kid can actually fight. Jr., on the other hand, doesn’t possess the same ceiling as Alvarez. But Jr. is still more polished at this point of their careers thanks to trainer Freddie Roach. Roach is a master at game plans and will have one ready for Alvarez. This is actually a more dangerous fight for Alvarez than it is for Jr. If Jr. loses, it can’t be said that many of us didn’t expect it. He’s a paper champ. If Alvarez loses, a lot of us will be disappointed because he has the makings of a future superstar.
Alvarez still needs time to tighten his wide looping punches. The perfect scenario would be the fight happening in 2013. Hopefully by then both fighters will have beaten notable names.
This is a big fight. Jr. has a solid jab, great body attack and a strong chin. Canelo throws combinations but loops his punches. Let’s hope Arum and De La Hoya get this fight made. The Lopez – Gamboa (non)-fight should serve as a lesson for the both of them.
