SAN ANTONIO – Tuesday afternoon, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and his new trainer Freddie Roach conducted an open workout for local media that was much more than advertised. Far from the scripted, lather-me-up-for-the-press exercises these events usually comprise, Chavez and Roach worked long and hard. And it looked like one of them needed it.
Chavez (40-0-1, 30 KOs) arrived later than initially planned at Jesse James Leija’s Championfit Gym – part of “Latin Fury 15” fight week festivities – though not for the reasons some might expect. Originally scheduled to walk through the paces before Saturday’s co-main event star Marco Antonio Barrera, Chavez instead had his costar go first so that Chavez could have more time for stretching, shadow boxing and lots of pad work.
Before working on his new charge’s balance, timing and occasionally questionable defense, Freddie Roach answered questions with typical honesty.
“More time would have been better,” Roach said of his short training camp with Chavez. “He’s not lazy. He’s trying. But he doesn’t have all the moves yet.”
Asked to list Chavez’s strengths, Roach treated his guy’s height and reach.
“He has a great jab, but he doesn’t use it as much as I want him to,” Roach said. “He’s not 100 percent there right now.”
If Roach thought he was getting a lazy underachiever in Chavez – a label that has haunted the young Mexican with the country’s most famous name – he was pleased to learn that was not the case.
“He’s actually a very nice kid,” Roach said. “I was really surprised.”
When asked what most concerns him about Ireland’s John Duddy (29-1, 18 KOs), Chavez’s Saturday opponent, Roach was candid.
“Duddy has a pretty good right hand,” he said. “My guy tends to get hit with those.”
Probably a few left hands, too. Once Alex Ariza, Roach’s strength and conditioning coach, was done stretching Chavez and watching him shadow box, Roach put on the hand pads and began a session with Chavez that could best be called instructive. Trainer and fighter looked well-rehearsed and tightly in-sync while doing 1-2s but quickly stumbled on dead patches when their focus turned to hooks and defense.
As Roach promised, Chavez looked particularly susceptible to right crosses, as his left hand strayed low much of the time. More troublesome still were the balance issues Chavez showed while trying to come off the ropes by pivoting leftward on his lead foot. A rudimentary move, the pivot’s requisite weight shift befuddled Chavez enough for Roach to spend the better part of a round on it, belying the merits of Chavez’s pristine record and making ringsiders wonder what will happen if Duddy forces Chavez to the ropes Saturday.
That match will be the main event of a nine-fight card promoter Top Rank will stage at Alamodome, downtown.
MARCO ANTONIO BARRERA BACK IN FIGHTING TRIM
Also present Tuesday afternoon were Mexican three-division world champion Marco Antonio Barrera (65-7, 43 KOs) and undefeated Phoenix hopeful Jose Benavidez (6-0, 6 KOs). Barrera will fight little-known Brazilian lightweight Adailton De Jesus (26-4, 21 KOs) in Saturday’s co-main event, while Benavidez will face Rhode Island’s Josh Beeman (4-6-2, 2 KOs) in the card’s opening bout.
After skipping rope, doing some light shadow boxing and saluting gathered fans, Barrera took a shower, changed and greeted the media, looking trimmer than he had during a press conference last month.
Asked how high his weight had climbed after his loss to Amir Khan 15 months ago, Barrera was truthful if not proud.
“One forty-seven,” Barrera said. “I let it go a little. It was the highest it has ever been. But I have lost the weight slowly, little by little. I feel good.”
