Chavez Jr. vs. Vera Will Be One of the Bloodiest Battles of the Year

After a year-long absence, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (46-1-1, 32 KO) is returning to the ring to take on the rough-and-tumble Brian Vera (23-6, 14 KO) on Sept. 7, per Dan Rafael of ESPN.com.

Chavez was always a naturally large middleweight. In light of that, he is moving up to 168 pounds for this bout.

Both men fight with an aggressive style, which should make this showdown one of the most bruising encounters of the year.

The meeting is scheduled to take place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles the week before Floyd Mayweather Jr. fights Canelo Alvarez.

In Chavez's last fight, he lost his WBC middleweight title in a unanimous decision loss to Sergio Martinez.

Despite being thoroughly out-boxed for most of the fight, Chavez Jr. made it interesting by dropping Martinez in the 12th round. The son of the Mexican boxing legend Julio Cesar Chavez always brings that explosive element to his fights.

He'll need every bit of his power against the rugged Vera.

Martinez did not stand in front of Chavez Jr., but that probably won't be the case in this fight. Vera hardly ever takes a step backward and he believes in his power and toughness. While no opponent has successfully stood toe-to-toe with Chavez Jr., Vera will likely give it a shot.

His heart, chin and will are very strong, but his style is one that causes him to absorb a lot of punches. While he takes too much punishment to convince most that he'll have a great shot of beating Chavez Jr., he'll at least make him work for the win.

In Vera's last fight, he defeated Donatas Bondorovas. Bondorovas suffered a bad cut over his left eye in the sixth round that forced him to retire. Vera was narrowly ahead of him on all three judges' scorecards at the time of the stoppage.

Whenever Vera fights, the one thing that seems to be a given is bloodshed. His clash with Chavez Jr. may not last longer than six rounds, but you can bet on the fight living up to its bloody expectations.

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