by James Slater – According to “The Bible of Boxing’s” on line web site, a light-middleweight match-up between young and exciting fighters Julio Cesar Chavez Junior and John Duddy is in the works for next April. According to promoter Bob Arum, in speaking to Ring on line, the plan is for Chavez Jr and Duddy to fight against selected opposition on the same card in either Mexico or Las Vegas in December. Then, should both guys win, they would meet up in an intriguing showdown at Madison Square Garden next spring..
Chavez fights next this Saturday night, when he takes on the decent (and never stopped) Jason LeHoullier in Mexico, while Duddy fights next on October 10th at Madison Square Garden against Mexican journeyman Michi Munoz. With respect, neither fighter should have too many problems in these respective bouts. But who would/will win when Chavez and Duddy clash next year?
Both fighters are aggressive, exciting and fun to watch fighters. Both men are also yet to be tested at world class level. And though this fact will remain even after they’ve squared off next year, the fight is a definite step up for both men. Duddy, the older man by seven years at age 30, is prone to cuts, has real problems avoiding shots and has already been beaten (in an upset by underdog Billy Lyell last time out). As such, against son of a legend Chavez, Duddy will likely be the betting underdog going into next April’s bout.
Chavez Jr is far from unbeatable, however, and he too has struggled in a couple of fights, even though he’s won all but one of his pro contests, with one draw. It could be argued, also, that Duddy has met the slightly better class of opposition – with Howard Eastman and Luis Ramon “Yori Boy” Campas having been defeated by the popular Irishman. Also of note is the fact that both men have wins over the tough Matt Vanda, and it’s agreed that Duddy did a lot better against “The Predator” than Chavez did in his first meeting with him (although admittedly, Chavez had a fever going into the July 2008 fight). Could Duddy be the slightly better fighter?
Both men like to trade (which is what makes them good value for money operators) and the talked of April fight will likely be a real slugfest – with Chavez firing off wicked body shots and Duddy returning fire with blows upstairs. Even a possible fight of the year candidate, Chavez Jr-Duddy could well be one of 2010’s best fights to look forward to.