Retired UFC great Anderson Silva is in talks for a boxing match against Mexico’s Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.,:
Julio César Chávez Jr vs Anderson Silva, en negociaciones
DETALLES 👇 https://t.co/JqK6P0Mgxy
— ESPN KnockOut (@ESPNKnockOut) March 22, 2021
The bout is targeted for June 19th at the Jalisco Stadium in Guadalajara Mexico in an event dubbed as “Tribute to the Kings” where Junior’s father Julio Sr. will take on Hector Camacho Jr. in an exhibition boxing match.
It was announced during a press conference held last Thursday when event organizer Saul Rios revealed that it was Chavez Jr. who broached the idea of fighting Silva.
Son of the Legend
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. is the namesake and son of Mexico’s best boxing champion. But Junior has squandered several opportunities to prove that he is more than his legendary father’s son. Make no mistake, the 35-year old is a former WBC middleweight champion but his disappointments have overshadowed his accomplishments inside the boxing ring.
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. squanders yet another opportunity to prove he’s more than his legendary father’s son.
New column from @pugboxing: https://t.co/BoFR5n25La pic.twitter.com/5ikfddnw8j
— The Athletic Boxing (@TheAthleticBOX) December 21, 2019
Chavez Jr. won the world title by defeating Sebastian Zbyk in 2011. He successfully defended the belt thrice, against Peter Manfredo Jr., Marco Antonio Rubio, and Andy Lee. He lost the belt to Sergio Martinez in 2012, his first career loss. It has been downhill since then for the younger Chavez.
Junior is coming off a 4th round TKO of Ecuador’s Jeyson Minda last November but his most significant wins since 2013 were two unanimous decisions against little-known Brian Vera. Chavez Jr. hoped to revive his career by fighting Daniel Jacobs in 2019 but he inexplicably quit after five rounds.
One of the Greatest of All-Time
Silva is considered one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all-time. He held the UFC middleweight title for 2,457 days from 2006 to 2103, the longest reign ever by a UFC champion. He successfully defended the belt a record 16 times before losing to Chris Weidman at UFC 162. Silva won only twice after that, including one that was overturned to a no-contest following a failed drug test.
Longest title reign
Longest win streak
Most middleweight title fights
Most knockdowns in history
Most finishes in title fights
Most finishes in middleweight historyAnderson Silva – one the greatest mixed martial artists of all time.#UFCVegas12 pic.twitter.com/t7XIG6WEJ7
— bet365 (@bet365) November 1, 2020
The Spider last fought on October 31, 2020, when he suffered a fourth round knockout loss to Uriah Hall. The defeat marked his third consecutive setback and he was released from the promotion three weeks later.
Silva had long been linked to boxing. He was rumored to fight Roy Jones Jr. but that never materialized because of his contract with the UFC and because crossover boxing matches weren’t a thing back then. But with Silva now retired and celebrity boxing matches an “in thing”, Silva vs Chavez isn’t a surprise.
Celebrity Boxing Fights
Silva isn’t the first former MMA star to venture into boxing. Former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir is expected to box former boxing world champion, Antonio Tarver, in the undercard of Jake Paul vs Ben Askren. Askren is also a former Bellator MMA welterweight champion who will take on YouTuber star Paul in the headliner of the Triller promoted event.
Floyd Mayweather knocks out Conor McGregor in epic fight https://t.co/a3Nne96HG1 pic.twitter.com/XZsw0ZMHqW
— Business Insider (@BusinessInsider) August 27, 2017
It can be recalled that it was MMA superstar Conor McGregor who brought to light celebrity boxing matches when he faced undefeated boxing great Floyd Mayweather in a lucrative boxing match in 2017. Jake Paul’s brother, Logan Paul then introduced celebrity boxing matches when he boxed fellow YouTube artist KSI in a white-collar boxing match on August 25, 2018. The two fought again in a rematch on November 9, 2019, this time in a professional boxing match.
Former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson also joined the fray, when he returned from retirement to box fellow boxing great Roy Jones Jr. last November. In the undercard of that event, Jake Paul knocked out former NBA slam dunk king Nate Robinson. Paul then tried to lure McGregor to a boxing match but ended up fighting Askren.
Steve Richardson
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