Julio Cesar Chavez Jnr will make his quickest ring turnaround in more than five years.
The second-generation boxer Chavez will headline an April 25 TV Azteca show from Estadio Adolfo Lopez Mateos, a baseball stadium in Reynosa, Mexico. Culiacan’s Chavez, 55-7-1 (35 KOs), will face Colombia’s Jhon Caicedo, 13-1 (5 KOs), in a scheduled 10-round cruiserweight bout.
It will mark Chavez’s second fight of 2026, after he returned to the ring in a fourth-round knockout of Angel Julian Sacco, 10-2-1 (4 KOs), on January 24 in San Luis Potosi. The three months between opportunities is the shortest span since 2020 for Chavez, the son of Julio Cesar Chavez Snr, who ranks high among Mexico’s greatest fighters ever.
Caicedo is coming off a third-round knockout defeat against former title challenger Avni Yildirim last June 26 in Istanbul, Turkey. The showdown with Chavez will mark Caicedo’s second consecutive road trip, after he previously fought exclusively in Colombia.
For now, Chavez has no choice but to fight in Mexico – at least for as long as he chooses to continue to box.
The former WBC 160lbs titlist was arrested and detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in early July, just days after his June 28 lopsided defeat against Jake Paul in Anaheim, California. He was released on August 24 but faces allegations of Sinaloa cartel ties and trafficking firearms, ammunition and explosives.
The 40-year-old Chavez has professed his innocence and has since placed his focus on resurrecting his troubled career.
The bounce-back win over Sacco placed Chavez at .500 over his past 10 fights, spanning nine years beginning with his May 2017 shutout defeat against countryman Saul “Canelo” Alvarez in Las Vegas.
Just two years and two fights after that setback, Chavez ran into more trouble ahead of his planned showdown with Daniel Jacobs. The bout was due to take place in Las Vegas, but the Nevada commission disallowed the contest and threatened to suspend Chavez after he evaded random drug testing protocols.
Jacobs-Chavez was eventually relocated to Phoenix; their December 2019 ended with Chavez quitting on his stool after five rounds, a development that sparked a post-fight riot.
Chavez’s career appeared to bottom out after a June 2021 split decision defeat against UFC legend and boxing novice Anderson Silva in Guadalajara, Mexico. Two wins followed before his 10-round defeat against Paul in their cruiserweight contest.
Ring activity can only help Chavez, given everything else he has going on outside the ring. He has the support of the WBC, which hopes to establish the border town of Reynosa as a recurring boxing hub. Chavez still holds enough name value to draw attention to the show, which promises to feature rising local and regional prospects.
