Julio Caser Chavez Jr. Determined To Forge His Own Legacy of Greatness

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. defeated “Ireland’s” John Duddy by unanimous decision in a middleweight contest Saturday night at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

Chavez (41-0-1-1, 30 KOs), the son of iconic pugilist Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. (107-6-2, 86 KOs), dominated the opening rounds and forced Duddy (29-2, 18 KOs) to scrap his plan and battle from behind.

“John is the toughest fighter I’ve faced so far,” said Chavez, 24, who was born in Culiacan, a notorious Mexican city that is regarded as the drug capital of the planet Earth.

“He kept the pressure on and really pushed me farther than I’ ve been to this point in my career. But I knew coming in that he was going to be challenging me, and I was happy to walk away with the victory.”

Chavez trumped Troy Rowlands by unanimous decision in his last matchup this past November. However, the fight was eventually declared a no-contest because Chavez tested positive for an illegal diuretic designed to lose weight.

Chavez is greatly skilled and, as a youngster, his potential as a prizefighter seems unlimited.

Nevertheless, he will inevitably face tremendous pressure being compared to his father, a six-time world champion who also managed to fornicate with Salma Hayek.

After the Rowlands debacle last autumn, Chavez hired Dedham’s Freddie Roach to work as his trainer.

“It came to a point in my career that if I wanted to do better, if I wanted bigger and better things, I had to make a change,” said Chavez of his decision to employ Roach, a four-time Trainer of the Year.

“I did it because I knew I needed it for my career. I still want to do great things in boxing and that’s what motivated me. I thought, ‘Do I want to stay where I am or do I want to get better?’ This opportunity came and I took it and I’m very happy that I did.”

Roach is capable of getting the very best out of Chavez.

If Chavez doesn’t wilt under Roach’s intense training sessions, he could become an elite fighter in the squared circle.

Chavez should be “very happy that” Roach is in his corner.

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. now has a genuine chance to forge his own legacy of greatness.