Can Chávez Jr. Add An Upset To His Saga?

“Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them.” -James Baldwin.

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Having a father who is a national hero can be challenging. When your father is arguably the greatest boxer in the history of Mexico, and you enter the family business, the weight of expectations is immense.

On June 28th, Julio César Chávez Jr. (54-6-1, 34 KO) will take on social media person turned boxer Jake Paul (11-1, 7 KO) in Anaheim, California in Paul’s latest step up in competition.

While Chávez Jr. has name recognition, this is not quite the step up in competition that Jake Paul will make it out to be. Paul is indeed facing a former world champion and “someone who Canelo couldn’t knock out”, but since 2015 (or when Jake Paul was finishing up filming the movie Dance Camp), Chávez Jr.’s record is just 6-5.

In a way, it is fitting that Julio César Chávez Jr. is in this position to defend boxing’s honor against Jake Paul, the social media star who has infiltrated boxing as successfully as he has social media algorithms. Chávez Jr. was born in a boxing-crazed nation and fathered by a legend of the sport. While Chávez Jr.’s career has been disappointing, Chávez Jr. will become a folk hero in some circles if he can decisively defeat Jake Paul.

The boxing public has watched Chávez Jr. grow up; he and his brother, Omar, came to the ring with their father towards the end of his career. How did we get to this point with Julio César Chávez Jr.?

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Julio César Chávez Jr. was born on February 16th, 1986, when his father was the reigning WBC super flyweight champion. Being a teenager is tough for anyone, and Chávez Jr.’s teenage years were no exception. As he tells it, from the age of twelve, “[My dad] would take older, bigger, stronger kids who were either hanging out in the streets or working at the supermarket for a $3 or $5 wage and pay them $20 to fight me. If they won, he gave them $50. Fighting me was the best job in the neighborhood.” In addition to spending time employing Mexico’s youth, his dad was in a high-profile relationship with actress Salma Hayek that ultimately led to the divorce of his parents.

Chávez Jr.’s official amateur career was essentially a money grab. He had just two amateur fights, both shown on Mexican television, against Jorge Paez Jr., a fellow Mexican son of a world champion. Chávez Jr. had his first professional fight in September 2003.

In 2004, his first full year as a professional, he fought eleven times. Chávez Sr. had twelve fights each in his first two full years as a pro, 1981 and 1982. Just over twenty-five months into Chávez Jr.’s professional career, “The Son of the Legend” was fighting once every thirty-two days, amassing a 23-0 record with 18 knockouts.

One-time trainer Freddie Roach characterized Chávez Jr.’s early style this way: “He was trying to be like his dad. He was a little bit awkward with it. He is not like a natural athlete like his dad was and when you taught him something, he kind of had to learn it slowly. He had to do it over and over again.”

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In November 2009, following his win over Troy Rowland, Chávez Jr. got suspended for using a banned diuretic to help make weight, and the win was overturned and ruled a no-contest. It was not the last issue that Chávez Jr. had with substance abuse, another way in which he has followed in his father’s footsteps.

In the lead-up to his February 2012 win over Marco Antonio Rubio, Chávez Jr. got arrested in Los Angeles on charges of drunk driving.

Despite the building turmoil, Chávez Jr. did not suffer his first defeat until September 2012 against middleweight Sergio Martinez. The fight was a memorable one, with Martinez dominating the first eleven rounds until Chávez Jr. improbably rocked Martinez, scoring a knockdown and nearly snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.

It was reminiscent of when Julio César Chávez memorably knocked out Meldrick Taylor with two seconds left in a 1990 junior welterweight title unification fight he was getting outclassed in. Chávez Jr. could not imitate his father and complete the improbable comeback. Chávez Jr.’s fight against Sergio Martinez was the last time he fought for a world championship. After the fight with Martinez, Chávez Jr. was fined and suspended after testing positive for cannabis.

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Upon returning from his suspension, Chávez Jr. moved up to super middleweight for his September 2013 fight with Brian Vera. He weighed in at 172 pounds, well above the 168-pound limit. He defeated Vera on points that night and again in March 2014 in a rematch.

At that point, Chávez Jr. took a break from boxing and returned thirteen months later against Andrzej Fonfara at light heavyweight. Chávez Jr. was dominated by Fonfara and suffered the second loss of his career. The fight ended when Chávez Jr. did not come out of his corner after the ninth round.

Determined to get back in the win column, Chávez Jr. fought again a few months later against Marcos Reyes. Chávez Jr. won, but not before the bout had to be altered to a 170-pound catchweight the night before because Chávez Jr. could not make the contractually obligated weight of 168 pounds.

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Next up was the highest profile and highest-grossing fight of Julio César Chávez Jr.’s career. The bout aptly took place on Cinco de Mayo weekend in 2016 when he fought Canelo Alvarez. Cinco de Mayo weekend will usually feature a fight with the top Mexican boxer. When Canelo Alvarez and Julio César Chávez Jr. agreed to face off, it seemed like an intriguing matchup. Two big names with household appeal and contrasting styles faced off in a fight billed as the Mexican Showdown. On fight night, this was not what transpired. Chávez Jr. put on a pitiful performance against Canelo, landing just 71 of the 302 punches he threw and losing every round on all three scorecards. The pay-per-view generated nearly 1.2 million buys.

Chávez Jr. did not return to the ring for another twenty-seven months. When he did, Chávez Jr. made quick work of Evert Bravo (26-14-1), winning in just ninety-eight seconds. Inexplicably, for his next fight, Chávez Jr. was matched up against the rugged and talented Daniel Jacobs.

In December 2019. Daniel Jacobs pulverized Chávez Jr., who quit on his stool following the fifth round. The crowd in Phoenix, Arizona, was not happy with Chavez Jr. and showed it by raining trash and beer down into the ring in a chaotic, embarrassing scene.

To make things even worse for Chávez Jr., he was suspended following the loss after he refused to take a pre-fight drug test. That was the last fight that Chávez Jr. had against a top-level boxer.

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In the last four years, Chávez Jr. has boxed just three times, with two of those bouts coming against career mixed-martial artists. In a match against his only common opponent with Jake Paul, Chávez Jr. lost a 2021 decision to Anderson Silva. Chávez Jr. got back into the win column later that year against Peruvian David Zegarra. While Zegarra is primarily a boxer, he is currently in the middle of an eleven-fight losing streak.

In January 2024, Chávez Jr. entered a residential treatment program after he got arrested in Los Angeles on three felony gun possession charges. According to police, he unlawfully possessed two AR-style ghost rifles.

In his most recent bout, Chávez Jr. defeated Uriah Hall last July. Chávez Jr. weighed in at 197.75 pounds before the fight, the heaviest of his career. Following his points victory over Hall, the crowd booed Chávez Jr. when he called out Jake Paul.

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Julio César Chávez Jr. was born into a difficult position. Julio’s brother Omar also followed in his father’s footsteps and became a professional boxer. Omar did not reach the highs or lows that his brother has in his career. Omar’s boxing career has been notable for three separate retirements and a gambling addiction.

In July 2015, Chávez Jr. wrote an article for The Players Tribune that is fascinating to read nearly ten years later. It reads in part:

I wouldn’t be the boxer I am today without my father… But imagine for a moment that he’s not my father. He’s still a legend in the sport and one of the greatest in history, but we don’t share the same name. Would you still compare me to him? Would you put my record and my accomplishments next to his and say I’ve underachieved? If he’s not my father, is that a fair comparison?

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So, how does Julio César Chávez Sr. see his son faring against Jake Paul? Last month, the elder Chávez said, “I haven’t seen [Chávez Jr.] train at this level for many years. If he keeps this up until the fight, there is no way Jake Paul is going to beat my son.”

Call that wishcasting, delusion, or whatever you want, but Julio César Chávez Jr. will try not to disappoint his father, for better or worse.