By Jimmy M. There are a lot of really good fights in the first few months of 2012 that I am really excited about. One fight that could be a potential war is the Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. versus Marco Antonio Rubio.

These two Mexican fighters, like all Mexican (or most), have hearts of Aztec warriors (although, Jr.’s is yet to be tested) and can really shoot it out in the ring. Some may say that this is another easy win for Chavez, but I like to beg the differ. Marco Antonio is no push over. He’s been out for blood since getting knocked out by Kelly Pavlik back in ’09. Sure he’s been knocking out B and C class fighters (with the exception of Lemieux), but let’s face it, so has Chavez Jr. This is a good fight, although there could have been better ones. WBC middleweight champion, Chavez Jr. could have more on his plate than he bargained for. Let’s take a look at how this fight could turn out with my evaluation of these two fighters.

Marco Antonio Rubio is a veteran in the game. With a record of 53 wins, 5 losses and one draw with 46 KOs, Rubio is the most dangerous opponent that Chavez has faced. Rubio is a typical Mexican fighter, a brawler. He comes straight forward with flurries of punches. Chavez could use this to his advantage and jab as he moves from side to side when Rubio is coming in. Marco Antonio Rubio, although a brawler, has himself a decent defense. Simple, but useful, Rubio’s lanky arms provide good coverage from onslaughts to the face. The way to penetrate this defense is to go to the body. Many fighters don’t remember to do this and waste precious energy trying to get through a wall of two arms. Chavez should go to the body early in the fight to tire Rubio enough to where he will be too weak to hold his arms up. In the fight against Pavlik, by the 9th round, Rubio was too weak to have any defense. Although Pavlik is a total head hunter, he is a heavy hitter. The punches took a toll on Rubio. Chavez should not let Rubio stop moving. Once Rubio plants his feet down and begins throwing, he can be dangerous. In the fight against Vanda, once Rubio planted his feet, the combination of punches began. I was impressed by how well his combinations…were, well combined. In order for Chavez to win, he’ll need to keep moving and outbox Rubio, deposit all his money in the body and collect the dividends later in the fight.

WBC Middleweight Champion of the world, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. is a boxer not many boxing fans are taking too seriously. He is, what in the boxing community like to call, a paper champion. He hasn’t really fought anyone of any significance. So this should be a real important fight for Rubio (also for Chavez). Rubio needs to bring his A-game to this extremely important fight. But good thing for Rubio is that Chavez is not an elite fighter. So Rubio has a chance of getting his first real title. Chavez has many weaknesses but I am not going to go through them in detail, just watch the Zbik fight. Rubio needs to pressure! pressure! pressure! Chavez. He has to cut off the ring and use the same jab he had in the Vanda fight, strong, firm, and powerful. If Rubio can do this consistently, I honestly believe he can win. Like in the Manfredo fight, Chavez will try to box Rubio and counter. Lemieux did well against Rubio before he eventually got knocked out. This is why Rubio will need to pressure Chavez. Chavez is not as fast as David, so it’s going to be a little easier to block punches (with the exception of Chavez’s power).

With my thought’s on the fight said, let’s recap. Chavez needs to box Rubio and keep him at bay. Because Rubio is a pressure fighter, Chavez has to make sure that he won’t be able to keep going in the later round by going to the body. Rubio on the other hand, needs to pressure Chavez and use his jab and movements to get inside. I hope this turns out what I expect it to be, a war! And hopefully we can see what Chavez is made of, because I know that Rubio is going to make him fight. Well this is my take on this fight, I am no expert, just a huge fan of the sport. I hope you enjoyed my article.