By Miguel Rivera
Hall of Fame trainer Nacho Beristain is hoping to groom Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. into a powerful force in their ongoing training camp.
Chavez Jr. is preparing for his scheduled grudge match with countryman Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez, which takes place on May 6th from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The fight is contracted for a catch-weight of 164.5-pounds. Chavez Jr. is coming down from 168, while Canelo is moving up from 154-pounds.
Nacho and conditioning coach Angel "Memo" Heredia have come on board to prepare Chavez Jr. for what is the most important fight of his pro career.
"The father is a very close friend of mine for a long time, since he was an amateur boxer. Then the son is my friend since he was a child," said Beristain to HispanoPost.
"That indiscipline that he has, I know it... when a fighter is told to do the same thing every time before a fight, but there comes a time when he becomes bored. This is the same thing that I tell my helpers. [Chavez Jr.] has not even started the first round yet [of sparring] and they are already shouting 'throw this, throw the other.' And I tell them 'let him think,' because the first thing that he has to do is think how to solve the problem that is in front of him."
"And Julio, the father, was a boxing phenomenon. Everyone wants their children to do the same thing as them, but it is impossible. [Chavez Sr.] was born to box, he is the best thing that Mexican boxing has given to the world. Genetically all of the athletic habits remain, but [the son] is far from fighting like the father."
"We are going to try to squeeze the best out of him [Chávez Jr.], his stature, his physical strength, to try to make him do something remarkable in the fight. The fight is difficult, it's hard and I think it's going to be a good fight. Because the styles mesh well. Julio a little less technical, more aggressive, strong with a maybe a little more power and the other is a counter-puncher. I think the two styles are going to make for a great fight inside the ring."
