By Mark Vester

According to rumors going around in the Mexican press, a possible fight between Oscar De La Hoya (39-6, 30KOs) and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (38-0-1, 29KOs) is in the works. The fight with Chavez Jr. is probably the only "major" fight that De La Hoya, at this point in his career, can put together and it would actually sell. Mexican press reports indicate that Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, Mexico - would be the target venue. The stadium holds over 100,000 fans. De La Hoya has always dreamed of fighting there. Of course none of this has been confirmed by either side, but it's the logical fight if De La Hoya plans to continue his career.

The storyline would be huge to Mexican boxing fans. Since the day Chavez Jr. became a pro, Top Rank began dreaming up a possible future clash with De La Hoya. Coming off the one-sided wipeout against Manny Pacquiao, Oscar has been 3-3 in his last six fights. The storyline would obviously have Chavez Jr. seeking revenge for his father, who was beaten up twice by De La Hoya.

In 1996, De La Hoya busted up an old and undersized Chavez Sr. for nearly four rounds before the ringside doctor stopped the bloody assault. In 1998, De La Hoya beat up Chavez Sr. again, this time making the pround Mexican icon quit on his stool before the start of the ninth round. The two wins made a De La Hoya a villian to Mexican boxing fans. 

This time it's Chavez Jr. who is the young lion and De La Hoya is the old man. There would be no issues with weight as Chavez Jr. stages most of his fights around the junior middleweight limit. Unlike his much smaller father, Chavez Jr. is actually taller than De La Hoya and matches the Golden Boy in reach. Chavez Jr. is a star, because of his name, to the Mexican fans. He even pulls in decent pay-per-view numbers with the Top Rank promoted "Latin Fury" events. The problem with Chavez Jr. is putting him in with a dangerous opponent that makes financial sense. Top Rank has invested a lot of money into Chavez Jr. and fed him a lot of stiffs. He can't continue to eat stiffs forever and De La Hoya is the perfect "make or break" fight for him.

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