By Mark Vester
The young lion is looking for some family revenge. The 21-year-old, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (34-0-1, 27KOs) is looking to avenge his father's honor against Oscar De La Hoya (38-5, 30KOs).
De La Hoya is planning a May 3 tuneup bout with Mexico City's Estadio Azteca, one of the largest stadiums in the world, being a frontrunner to host the event. The stadium can hold over 100,000 people. While the opponent is likely Contender star Steve Forbes, nothing is set in stone. Chavez Jr. tells El Panama America that he would be more than happy to fight De La Hoya on that Cinco De Mayo weekend.
De La Hoya beat Chavez's father, Julio Sr., in 1996 and 1998. He stopping him in both fights. Chavez Jr is quickly becoming one of the most popular stars in Mexico, largely due to his legendary father's name and the excellent marketing by his promoters, Top Rank.
Chavez Jr. says he's one of the few opponents for De La Hoya that can sellout Estadio Azteca. The storyline is there, Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank have this fight in the back of their minds, but it's too soon. The fight needs more buildup and by the time Julio Jr. is really ready, De La Hoya might be gone. If he's still around, the fight means big business. At least Chavez Jr. is humble, he knows that he may not be at a point in his career where he's actually earned a fight with De La Hoya.
"He should give that opportunity to me (in May)," said Chavez Jr. "Nobody in the running to fight Oscar is going to fill up Azteca more than me. Therefore there should not be another option. I may not have earned the right for a fight with him, but I would like to fight him. For myself, I would like to fight De La Hoya."
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