By Dean Flessel: Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. will be fighting on August 10 against Colombian journeyman Evert Bravo in a scheduled 10 round match at 175 in Mexico. The location for the fight could be in Tijuana, Mexico, according to ESPN Deportes. It’ll be decided later this week. It’s difficult for Chavez Jr. to make the 168 pound limit at this point in his career.
This will be the first fight back for the 33-year-old former WBC middleweight champion Chavez Jr. (50-3-1, 32 KOs) since his loss to Saul Canelo Alvarez in May 2017. Chavez Jr. was soundly beaten by Canelo in a 12 round decision defeat. Canelo looked like he was trying to help Chavez Jr. at times during the fight, because he wasn’t throwing punches. It was sad to watch.
Chavez Jr. has tried to return to the ring several times since his loss to Canelo, but the fights have never materialized. Alfredo Angulo was one of the names that was mentioned.
Evert Bravo has experience
Evert Bravo (25-10-1, 19 KOs) comes into the fight with Chavez Jr. having lost three out of his last four fights, but he won his last fight against Luis Gonzalez. Among Bravo’s recent losses were defeats against these fighters:
- Alfredo Angulo
- Junior Younan
- Roamer Alexis Angulo
- Sean Monaghan
- Alejandro Berrio [former IBF super middleweight champion]
- Walter Gabriel Sequeira
- Roberto Feliciano Bolonti
- Thomas Oosthuizen
Bravo’s career was going well for the first five years before he ran into Oosthuizen in 2009, but it’s been downhill ever since. He wasn’t prepared to fight a guy in Oosthuizen’s class at that early stage in his career, and it’s predictable that he suffered a ninth round knockout.
Jose Uzcategui to fight on Chavez Jr. undercard
Former IBF super middleweight champion Jose Uzcategui will be fighting on the undercard against an opponent still to be determined, and he needs a win. This will be the first fight for the 28-year-old Uzcategui (28-3, 23 KOs) since he lost his IBF 168 pound title to Caleb Plant last January. Plant (19-0, 11 KOs) beat Uzcategui by a 12 round unanimous decision by the scores 116-110, 115-111 and 116-110.
Chavez Jr. vs. Uzcategui a possibility if both win on August 10
Zanfer Promotions is considering the possibility of a Chavez Jr. vs. Uzcategui fight if both fighters win on August on August 10. However, there’s also a possibility that Chavez Jr. could face Alfredo Angulo (25-7, 21 KOs) if him comes out victorious on that date. Chavez Jr. likes the fight with the 36-year-old Angulo, and it’s a match that makes sense.
Angulo knocked out Bravo in the second round April. Before that, Angulo had lost to Sergio Mora and Freddy Hernandez in consecutive fights. Angulo and Chavez Jr. are similar in that they’re heavy-handed fighters with slow hand speed. Angulo would be a better option for Chavez Jr. than Uzcategui, because the Venezuelan is an excellent boxer.
Uzcategui is still in his prime at 28. Although Uzcategui lost badly to Plant, he’s still one of the top contenders in the 168 pound division. Chavez Jr. isn’t a top contender at super middleweight at this point in his career. He’s a faded fighter, whose best days are past him. Chavez Jr. hasn’t been the same since his 12 round decision loss to Sergio Martinez in 2012.