(Photo: Zanfer Boxing) By Dan Ambrose: WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (45-0-1, 31 KO’s) better hope that challenger Andy Lee (28-1, 20 KO’s) gasses out at some point on Saturday night in their fight at the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, because if he doesn’t fade, Chavez Jr. will be in for a real whipping in this fight.

Chavez Jr’s huge bulk – he typically weighs 180lbs on fight night – may cripple him against the lean, powerful and quick Lee in this fight, because the Irish middleweight doesn’t fight in the typical manner that Chavez Jr’s past opponents have. Chavez Jr. has patterned his fighting style after his famous father Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., who loved to fight on the inside where he was able to get the better of his opponents with his raw power and hooks.

Chavez Jr., however, is a tall 6-foot middleweight, and he doesn’t have the big power that his smaller father had going for him, yet Chavez Jr. persists in trying to fight on the inside. Against lesser opposition, Chavez Jr. has been able to get away with beating them on the inside because none of them had any ability to move around the ring, fight inside or throw with power.

Lee isn’t an inside fighter, but he does have much better power than Chavez Jr. and he’s a lot faster on his feet as well. Lee reminds me of a middleweight version of heavyweight Wladimir Klitschko. Lee can punch with big power on the inside, and is dangerous with either hand. His ability to move around the ring is what makes him even tougher to beat, because he’s not easy to hit when he’s focusing on his defense.

You can hit him when he’s looking to slug, but you can’t do it on a consistent basis. Lee isn’t going to fight Chavez Jr’s fight by standing with his back glued to the ropes, trying to fight off the hulking 180 pound Chavez Jr., who at this point should really be fighting at 168 lbs in the super middleweight division rather than boiling down to 160 to try and get an edge against smaller middleweights.

It’s worked for Chavez Jr., but it’s worked against weaker opponents. His promoter has made sure that Chavez Jr. didn’t face anyone dangerous like Sergio Martinez or Lee. I’m surprised that Lee is being given a chance now after all this time. I guess they must feel like Chavez Jr. has the skills to win this fight given his recent victory over the smallish, heavy-handed Marco Antonio Rubio last February. Lee is a bigger puncher than the 5’10” Rubio, a lot taller at 6’2″, and not stupid enough to fight off the ropes like Rubio did in his loss to Chavez Jr.