By Chris Robinson
It may be hard to fathom but Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. is now a champion following his gritty victory over Sebastian Zbik earlier this month in Los Angeles at the Staples Center. Recently in Mexico City the 25-year old from Sinaloa officially received his WBC belt from WBC president Jose Sulaiman and spoke about the importance of his new crown.
Chavez's father Julio Sr. carved out a hall-of-fame career that saw him hold the WBC belt at 130 and 140 pounds and Junior realizes that he is next in line.
“I am very proud to have earned this world championship and will work very hard to keep it for a long time," said Chavez. "I remember going with my dad to this ceremonies when he won world championships and was very proud of him. Today is my turn and I can find the words to tell you what a great feeling this is. I very proud to be the first Mexican to win a middleweight championship, but I don’t want to stop here. I want to be the best at my weight class and will work very hard to become the best, it will not be easy but I will do all I can to get there.”
There were initial rumors that Chavez would be lined up for a fall showdown with Miguel Cotto, a fight that would have likely went down in Las Vegas, but Top Rank promoter Bob Arum has since backed off on that proposition, fully realizing that the newly-crowned champion needs more seasoning at this point. The latest buzz has Chavez returning in September in San Antonio, with former title challenger Peter Manfredo's name being in the mix.
For now Chavez is happy just having the green belt around his waist but realizes that the time will eventually come when he will be gunning for the big names.
“It looks like Manfredo is next and then [Marco Antonio] Rubio, but next year I hope to face Miguel Cotto and Sergio Martinez. Canelo Alvarez is a good fighter and I would like to fight him as well, but Top Rank is my promoter and they will decide when this fights are to be made."
