Best I Faced: Julio Cesar Chavez

[Ruthless-RKO]

Julio Cesar Chavez was one of the best fighters ever from Mexico. When he was active, “El Gran Campeon” was revered in his homeland to such an extent that 132,000 people showed up to one of his title defenses.

Chavez, known for his debilitating left hook to the liver, iron will and granite chin, won seven world titles in three weight classes and went unbeaten in his first 90 bouts.

“I had a lot of great fights where at the end of the night I made it look easy,” he said, “but if we’re going to look at one fight that shot me to another level, it was the Edwin Rosario fight.”

Chavez added the WBC 135-pound title in a unification bout by outpointing countryman Jose Luis Ramirez in 1988 before moving up to junior welterweight, where he would stop Roger Mayweather in 10 rounds to win the WBC belt.

Chavez thrived at 140, reigning for 4½ years and making 12 successful title defenses. It was during that period, in 1990, that he added the IBF title by famously stopping Meldrick Taylor with two seconds remaining in a fight he was losing.

In the end, Chavez (107-6-2, 86 KOs) fought the best fighters at and around his weight yet compiled one of the most remarkable records in boxing history. He took part in 37 world title fights, more than any other man in history.

“In my day I fought against the best,” he said “I can’t say I wish I had fought Sugar Ray Leonard because he was way above my weight class or Roberto Duran because they were just way above me in weight. I think in my career I took on the best and beat them all.

“I think my greatest achievement is getting to 90 [fights) as an undefeated fighter. I believe that of all the things I’ve done the fact I could withstand 13 years of the best challenges, that’s my great accomplishment.”

Chavez attributed his inability to win a 147-pound title to his size.

“I just have to be honest, welterweight wasn’t my weight. I couldn’t make 147 even if I tried. For De La Hoya (in the second fight) and Whitaker I made 144½ and 142 pounds and I had eaten breakfast that morning.”

Today, Chavez works for ESPN Deportes and TV Azteca. He also provides guidance to his son, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Away from boxing, he has established two drug rehabilitation clinics in Mexico.

He graciously agreed to speak to The Ring about the best he faced in 10 key categories.

BEST SKILLS

Meldrick Taylor: He had every skill you need as a fighter, his speed, quickness, power, all you could ask for.

BEST JAB

Oscar De La Hoya: Because he was tall and used it to mark his range.

BEST DEFENSE

Pernell Whitaker: He was very elusive, and although I thought he was a dirty fighter, beyond that he was just hard to find and especially hard to hit.

BEST CHIN

Hector Camacho Sr. And Edwin Rosario: I threw everything at them and they kept coming.

BEST PUNCHER

Rosario: Anywhere he hit me it hurt. Frankie Randall was also a hard puncher. [Against Rosario] it was my youth, it was the fact I was in my prime, it all helped me get through that fight.

FASTEST HANDS

Taylor: It was definitely Meldrick Taylor. I would land one shot and I would take four in return. He was quick. More than anything it was the fact he had real quick hands. By the time I landed one real power shot I was taking five, six in return. They weren’t hard shots, they weren’t power shots, but I couldn’t get in my range, I couldn’t get established. In that fight I made a big mistake, which was trying to fight at his pace. That’s why down the stretch I was exhausted, I was completely exhausted. I found a way to do it but I was done.

FASTEST FEET

Camacho: It was Hector “Macho” Camacho who had the best footwork. He just dominated the way he walked around the ring. He knew where he was moving, he wouldn’t let you find him. And more than anything he was a marathon man the way I see it. He just was not there to be hit. But in the ninth round he stood and fought, so he was a macho man because he did stand there and took the shots.

SMARTEST

Whitaker: He was very intelligent. And then there was Oscar De La Hoya, who knew how to use his advantage in height and his distance. I think he was very intelligent in the ring.

STRONGEST

Jose Luis Ramirez: He was a southpaw who not only took a good shot but he gave a good shot. The fact he could land a punch and hurt you and take a punch and not be hurt, that was his greatest virtue.

BEST OVERALL

Taylor: I faced everybody. If you look at my record, all the fights I had, I had 37 world championship fights and I didn’t hand pick any opponents. But if I was to look at the best overall fighter, it would have to be Meldrick Taylor.

[littlepug]

Love the Taylor fight, it had everything you want in a top level fight, I still watch it every now and again.

[paddy chavez]

Great fighter

[bigjack]

Great fighter

Absolutely,one of the best fighters to put on a pair of boxing gloves ever

[Noxy]

JCC, he was indeed amazing. The Rosario and Taylor fights always stand out for me in his career. Rosario was a hard man with great power but Chavez was harder. The Taylor fight, well it’s as JCC says. Taylor was clearly quicker but Chavez was gradually getting to him. There was a clear contrast between speed and power.

[Controversial]

“I think my greatest achievement is getting to 90 [fights) as an undefeated fighter. I believe that of all the things I’ve done the fact I could withstand 13 years of the best challenges, that’s my great accomplishment.”[/i]

What about his early career loss that was wiped from most record books..

[Uppercut1]

“I think my greatest achievement is getting to 90 [fights) as an undefeated fighter. I believe that of all the things I’ve done the fact I could withstand 13 years of the best challenges, that’s my great accomplishment.”[/i]

What about his early career loss that was wiped from most record books..

WHO WAS THAT AGAINST?

[Controversial]

What about his early career loss that was wiped from most record books..

WHO WAS THAT AGAINST?

https://boxrec.com/media/index.php/Juli ... iguel_Ruiz

[margaret thatcher]

If the commission did actually reverse it then he was officially still undefeated and it's not like the opponent actually got the better of him in that fight. Unbeaten records are just technicalities anyway, a lot of fighters stay unbeaten only because they got a bogus decision here or there when he know in fact they deserved to lose

[Controversial]

If the commission did actually reverse it then he was officially still undefeated and it's not like the opponent actually got the better of him in that fight. Unbeaten records are just technicalities anyway, a lot of fighters stay unbeaten only because they got a bogus decision here or there when he know in fact they deserved to lose

Of course but it was a dodgy reversal of the result. However you spin it it should be an official loss.

“For many years all the leading record books, including both Pugilato and The Ring Record Book, recorded the first loss of Julio Cesar Chavez as being by disqualification....
This has since been changed to a knockout victory for Chavez, based on confirmation from the local boxing commission in Culiacan that it altered the verdict the following day.
Ramon Felix, manager of Chavez, happened to be a member of the Culiacan commission at the time."
The A-Z of World Boxing by Bert Blewett (1996) at p. 341.”

[Noxy]

Aye, remember The Ring used to list him as 48 (or whatever) 1 and you'd think. WHAT! Someone beat Chavez?! How did I miss that

[Jaywheel]

Love the Taylor fight, it had everything you want in a top level fight, I still watch it every now and again.

I can manage without a corrupt referee to spoil the result of an otherwise great top level contest.

[littlepug]

Love the Taylor fight, it had everything you want in a top level fight, I still watch it every now and again.

I can manage without a corrupt referee to spoil the result of an otherwise great top level contest.

Nah no corruption there, controversial yes which adds to the fights legendary status, not gonna debate it but Taylor was messed up so it got stopped.

[Jaywheel]

Steele was on King's payroll.

[Counter-puncher]

I'm amazed he said that Rosario's punches hurt him, either Rosario never seemed to land cleanly or if he did, Chavez just walked through it, i don't recall Chavez showing any effect to the extent of even showing he'd been hit, never mind hurt at all.

[Seamus]

I'm surprised he didn't say Juan LaPorte for best chin.

[gilgamesh]

I can manage without a corrupt referee to spoil the result of an otherwise great top level contest.

Nah no corruption there, controversial yes which adds to the fights legendary status, not gonna debate it but Taylor was messed up so it got stopped.

Nobody in the history of fights has been so messed up they couldn't withstand 10 more seconds when they've already withstood 35 minutes minutes and 50 seconds.

Or at least if they couldn't, they didn't need a ref to wave it off, they just needed a ref to count to 10. The fact that Steele couldn't count to 10 meant he shouldn't have stopped the fight.

[Counter-puncher]

I'm surprised he didn't say Juan LaPorte for best chin.

[NoScoutingReports]

Interesting article! Top fighter.

[Seamus]

Taylor never took his left arm off the rope. It was a good stoppage. So many guys think it was a travesty he took a beating like that and didn't get the decision. All he had to do was say he wanted to continue, and he'd have won a split decision, but he couldn't do that because as a local NBC sportscaster put it , he didn't know what planet he was on. Regardless of the referee's decision Chavez ended his career as a world class fighter.

[littlepug]

Nah no corruption there, controversial yes which adds to the fights legendary status, not gonna debate it but Taylor was messed up so it got stopped.

Nobody in the history of fights has been so messed up they couldn't withstand 10 more seconds when they've already withstood 35 minutes minutes and 50 seconds.

Or at least if they couldn't, they didn't need a ref to wave it off, they just needed a ref to count to 10. The fact that Steele couldn't count to 10 meant he shouldn't have stopped the fight.

Can’t count to ten when the guys on his feet, everyone knows the drill when you get knocked down, get up, get your hands up and tell the ref you’re ok to continue, he couldn’t do that so got stopped, wouldn’t expect the ref to know how many seconds left when he’s concentrating on the fighter.

[zuru]

Nobody in the history of fights has been so messed up they couldn't withstand 10 more seconds when they've already withstood 35 minutes minutes and 50 seconds.

Or at least if they couldn't, they didn't need a ref to wave it off, they just needed a ref to count to 10. The fact that Steele couldn't count to 10 meant he shouldn't have stopped the fight.

Can’t count to ten when the guys on his feet, everyone knows the drill when you get knocked down, get up, get your hands up and tell the ref you’re ok to continue, he couldn’t do that so got stopped, wouldn’t expect the ref to know how many seconds left when he’s concentrating on the fighter.

That's how I thought.The referee isn't a timekeeper,he's concentrating on the fighters and fight.Yeah it sucks for Taylor who is a good fighter and made a great fight but the referee did what he should have.

[Onetimeonly]

Love the Taylor fight, it had everything you want in a top level fight, I still watch it every now and again.

I can manage without a corrupt referee to spoil the result of an otherwise great top level contest.

That and Castillo/corrales 1 are almost unwatchable for me. Tough to watch that degree of robbery.

[Ambling Alp II]

Can’t count to ten when the guys on his feet, everyone knows the drill when you get knocked down, get up, get your hands up and tell the ref you’re ok to continue, he couldn’t do that so got stopped, wouldn’t expect the ref to know how many seconds left when he’s concentrating on the fighter.

That's how I thought.The referee isn't a timekeeper,he's concentrating on the fighters and fight.Yeah it sucks for Taylor who is a good fighter and made a great fight but the referee did what he should have.

The referee should have made sure he had Taylor's attention. He did not. Taylor did not seem to realize that Steele was talking to him. Steele was a corrupt referee. Sometimes he would stop a fight too early, (for example Ruddock-Tyson I) nd yet other times he let a fight go on and on.

[margaret thatcher]

Eh, I wouldn't have stopped it, but I don't really buy that argument. Steele was right in his face and shouted at him multiple times, Taylor should have been giving his attention. It's rule 1 for a dropped fighter to know they should be attentive and respond to the ref. The ref should be the only thing you are focusing on once you get up, but Taylor was pretty much unresponsive, that's on him and not Steele, and obviously it's going to reflect negatively on his condition if he doesnt respond

TBH I can see both sides of the argument. I don't think Chavez would've had the time to finish it, but Taylor was basically unresponsive and obviously in a bad state where he wasn't showing himself to be ready to go on, and there is the slight possibility he could've still been folded.

Bute-Andrade reminds me a lot of this though in that case the dropped guy won and there was less time left (ie actually 0)