Water Cooler Talk: Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. vs. Bryan Vera Edition

Capping off this month off was a live show from the increasingly popular and now mini-Mecca of boxing, Carson, California, for the HBO telecast this past weekend.  A relatively  cold and chilly Saturday evening set the backdrop for the main event headlined by grimy contender, Bryan Vera (23-7), taking on the returning former WBC middleweight champion, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr (47-1-1).  Sadly, what truly sent chills down people’s backs that night once the fight finished wasn’t as much the actions of both men, but the scoring of their 10-round affair.  In what will probably be remembered as the most poorly judged boxing fight of 2013, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr walked away with a unanimous decision in a battle where he at best captured a draw. Here are some of the key points to let everyone around the office know that you’re thinking what they’re thinking.

How Many Alterations Can You Make To A Boxing Bout?

Apparently as many as you like if the opposing camp is content with receiving lump sums of cash and agrees to move forward with the fight. Chavez Jr had not fought since losing to Sergio Martinez in September of 2012 so the eyes of question and criticism already had him locked in their crosshairs. Ironically enough, from the beginning the Chavez Jr and Vera show seemed destined for trouble when it was supposed to take place on September 7^th but then was pushed back to the end of the month. Add to that, once it got closer to fight night, Chavez Jr and company not only managed to change the contracted weight from the originally agreed upon 160 lbs but moved it up to the super middleweight limit of 168-pounds, then upwards again to a catch weight of 173 lbs. Just shy of it by two pounds, this match went from middleweight all the way up to a light heavyweight tilt. If that wasn’t enough, the icing on the cake came when the fight was shaved down from its scheduled 12 rounds down to a 10-round collision.

Didn’t Judges Already Steal  Boxing’s Thunder in September ?

Unfortunately, yes. First, it happened about two weeks ago for the mega-fight between Floyd “Money” Mayweather and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez in Las Vegas.  After basically pitching a shutout thanks to his masterful 12-round performance, the undefeated Mayweather was given a jaw-dropping 114-114 score from one of the judges at the MGM Grand that night. The bogus scorecard granted the boxing icon a majority decision, seeing as how luckily, the other two judges did see it in Mayweather’s favor with scores of 117-111 and 116-112. Still, the even score drew almost as much attention as the record-setting PPV itself leaving fans with a bad taste in their mouth, tarnishing what will forever be known as one of the most profitable and successful boxing events of all-time.

Have Questionable high Profile Back-To-Back Decisions Happened Like This Before?

Fortunately, they have not.  However, it is almost amazing that two situations of this magnitude occurred so close to one another further igniting the flames of controversy. The events at the Stub Hub Center really have the fight world buzzing, all for the wrong reasons of course but it should not be blamed on the fighters. To very few people’s surprise, Chavez nonchalantly fought at a slow pace yet searched for those powerful, homerun shots, incidentally giving away a bulk of the rounds due to a mixture of complacency and inactivity. While on the other hand, Bryan Vera marched forward, hustling with supreme condition and a valiant desire to emerge triumphantly. Vera absorbed some powerful shots but he gave as good as he got, nonetheless the most significant blow to the proud Texan was when the announcer read the point totals of 96-94, 97-93 and a ludicrous 98-92. It looks like lighting did strike twice this month as boxing’s integrity takes another hit thanks to poor officiating.   

What’s Next For Chavez Jr and Vera ?

Without question, Bryan Vera’s future will definitely be a bright one.  No matter where the road takes him, the Texas-born boxer has made his name, family and friends proud throughout his career and he succeeded in that exponentially this pastSaturday. Regardless of the outcome, fans now will undoubtedly have a place in their heart for a fighter with a heart the size of Texas. The deck was stacked against Vera and he overcame every ploy to derail his plan to make the world take notice of who he is and in turn raised the stock of his career to new heights landing guaranteed bouts in the future thanks to his determination, warrior spirit and gentlemanliness before and after the fight.  If that isn’t a fighter worth tuning in to watch for, I don’t know what is?

As for Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, the road back to the top has just gotten noticeably steeper. The young Mexican fighter had all the advantages in the world both physical and mental going into this fight as a 14-1 favorite and his performance fell quiet short of that. If he couldn’t dispatch of a contender not perceived in his league, then what will happen when he runs into Sergio Martinez again or maybe challenges Gennady Golovkin? The rumors swirling since last year were that he plans on challenging top pound for pound fighter, Andre Ward, who was coincidentally at ringside as a commentator. Besides physical opposition, Chavez has to overcome with his own demons of his issues with totally committing to training as well as making weight  thus the superstar fighter is either headed for something rough or about to carve out a career that legends are made of. Love him or hate him, Chavez Jr quite possibly just picked up some more viewers of his own come his next fight night.