By Dan Ambrose: Former WBC middleweight champion Sergio Martinez (49-2-2, 28 KO’s) feels he’s going to have the upper hand against his bigger, younger and unfortunately slower opponent WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (46-0-1, 32 KO’s) next month on September 15th in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Martinez said to Excelsior.com.mx “I will tire him, I will frustrate. The blows to the body will be key.”

It’s surprising to hear Martinez talk about going to Chavez Jr’s body with shots, because body punching usually isn’t a part of Martinez’s game. He’s strictly a head hunter and rarely goes to the body. The reason for this is because Martinez doesn’t stand in front of his opponents at close range looking to exchange like Chavez Jr does.

Martinez instead constantly circles the ring looking for areas to attack his opponents. He’s more of a pot shot fighter that loads up with fast punches that his opponents are often too slow to react to in order to block them. Chavez Jr. is the opposite type of fighter, although his trainer Freddie Roach has taught him to use a little bit of movement now and then, but for the most part Chavez Jr. tends to crowd his opponents at close range.

Martinez might be right about one thing, though, and that’s his ability to tire Chavez Jr. If you look at most of Chavez Jr’s fights, he’s tired out in the last three rounds. He’s a much different fighter from the 10th round on compared to in the first 9 rounds. With each round, Chavez Jr. tends to get weaker, more sloppy and more prone to getting hit cleanly by big power shots.

The danger is that if Chavez Jr. fades badly against Martinez, he’s going to be getting hit with some punishing left hand shots that could really test his ability to take punishment. It’s one thing getting hit by the likes of Andy Lee, and quite a different matter when it’s Sergio Martinez the one doing the hitting.