Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. retained his WBC middleweight belt with a fifth round TKO over Peter Manfredo Jr. of season one of The Contender.
Manfredo, as always, gave a gutsy performance but Chavez was in control throughout. In round five, Chavez staggered Manfredo with a hard right hand and then threw a barrage of punches until referee Laurence Cole jumped in to end the bout. The stoppage may have been a bit premature as Manfredo was not defenseless but it was only a matter of time as Chavez was clearly the superior fighter.
Chavez has been fighting professionally since 2003 and has 46 bouts under his belt (44-0-1-1) but is still only 25 and remains a work in progress. However, Chavez - now training under Freddie Roach - continues to improve and this may have been his most impressive performance to date. While Sergio Martinez and Saul Alvarez are the two big names on the horizon for Chavez, it's unlikely promoter Bob Arum will take any risks with him as long as he can earn big paydays against safer opposition.
After the fight, Manfredo indicated that he intends to retire. Healthy 30 year old boxers generally don't stay retired for long. Expect Manfredo - 37-7 with 20 KOs - to take a nice, long break and then get back in the ring in late 2012 or 2013.
Comments
I THINK PETER SHOULD HANG EM UP FOR GOOD,SAVE HIMSELF AND HIS FAMILY THE EMBARRASMENT!! AFTER ALL WASNT VINNY PAX THE REAL PRIDE OF PROVIDENCE? PETER SHOULD HAVE BEEN CALLED THE PUNK OF PROVIDENCE! NOT VERY PERSONABLE IN REAL LIFE.WHERES THE PAZ MOVIE?ENOUGH OF THIS MANFREDO CHARACTER!!!!!
The main charge against Chavez is he has been fed soft touches. Weigh that against the fact he a had limited amateur background so his learning process has been in the pro ranks. He seems to be improving every time, and now is the time to match him hard. The middleweight devision hasn’t much depth. I think the still physically maturing Chavez is destined for the super middleweights an all together tougher proposition.
Would like to add Sergio on the strength of his last performance would not be a certainty to defeat Chavez. The smallish Martinez may be overated on the strength of his k o over Paul Williams. In fact the punch while devastating was hardly textbook and how Williams didn’t see it, suggests his reflexes were already compromised.
So glad under Roach now! I love this kid!
Tom
“Kevdog”, anyone who gets into the ring to fight is absolutely not a punk Manfredo has earned respect as a blue-collar fighter who always performs at the highest level he can. Manfredo is a blood and guts warrior in the ring but cannot bring to mind memories of Arturo “Thunder” Gatti. Yes, its time for him to retire, before his courage so widely exceeds his lack of skills, it possibly leads him to be permanetly injured. Manfredo is no punk, but he is no Vinny Pazienza either. The quality of fighters Pazienza faced were far and above higher than anyone Manfredo has been matched with. Pazienza became a living legend and a hero, as he inspired boxing fans and all disabled people to overcome chronic pain, and adversity to be heroic in how they face the challenges of life. Pazienza worked tireously, against everyone’s advice, lifting weights, doing demanding exercises, running against resistance, and sparring to fight through severe injuries from an accident where he cracked several cervical, (neck), vertebrae and ruptured cervical disks to accomplish the impossible. Over a three month period, he successfully prepared for a return to the ring and took a shot at the championship, with no real “tune-up” fights. Against all medical advice and the pleas of friends and family, Pazienza made one of the greatest comebacks in boxing history by beating future WBC world Jr. Middleweight champion, Luis Santana, Pazienza went on to beat Roberto Duran twice while coming-up short against Roy Jones Jr. for the world super middleweight championship. The same Roy Jones, Jr. who is a super star in the “pound for pound ratings” from bare-knuckle days through today. No, Manfredodo is no Pazienza, he never claimed to be, but he is no “punk” either and such a lack of class offends the sport and those who labor to succeed in this, the truest of athletic tests.
“Kevdog”, there are no punks here; haters just hate.
Nicely said Jeff Bielecki. I stopped going to one site where the comments against the boxers were dispicable. This site so far has been respectful to the fighters and we can well do without comments inferring Punks etc.
How did Peter Manfredo embarrass himself? This criticism is wholly unwarranted and is totally nothing but an unjustified ridiculous comment from someone who doesn’t know Boxing. He did not embarrass himself in any manner whatsoever. Apparently this is just a negative person making a totally baseless negative comment. Peter Manfredo deserves compliments not criticisms because in every fight that I have ever seen him compete he has showed up in shape to fight. He always has given the fans an honest effort, and for that he deserves to be applauded. While he likely wouldn’t have won & was being outclassed by a bigger, younger, faster fighter, he wasn’t being pummeled into a defenseless target. He was still in the game & had his wits about him. Unfortunately Manfredo has twice in big bouts been the victim of premature stoppages, .i.e., this one & the Calzaghe Title tilt where Terry O’Connor made an outlandish stoppage that basically deprives the paying customers of seeing any semblance of a real contest. In either of those fights was Manfredo being dangerously pummeled. I’ve seen many fighters who were taking much more punishment come back to win. If Rocky Marciano was around today (There isn’t even a division around today for boxers who prime fighting weight is 185 lbs) he might be a .500 fighter because he often rallied back while being grotesquely bloodied against men who were physically bigger and totally in control at some point of the match. Also Marciano usually rose to the occasion after the 12th round due to his unmatched preparation & intestinal fortitude manifested in unworldly stamina and capacity to absorb punishment and the pain that goes with it. Fifty years ago a Peter Manfredo would have a better chance at winning more fights. Far too many fights are stopped prematurely. I realize the health of a boxer is a high priority, but this is the most dangerous sport in the world…and that’s part of its allure.
“Jeff B”,dont get your panties in a bunch,just trying to get a reaction from someone.But it appears that I have touched apon a nerve of your man -crush,hey.Thats OK,lots of men have them,no worries,and who asked for Vinnies resume,I didnt!Good for those of them who dont know,I GUESS??Your wrong,there are no haters,just MAN-CRUSHERS!!!Ha,Ha LOL!!