WBC Mandates Martinez vs. Chavez And Dawson vs. Hopkins

The WBC took a very hard line with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and mandated that he has to fight Sergio Martinez as reported by Rick Reeno of Boxing Scene. He cannot take a voluntary defense against either Marco Antonio Rubio or Miguel Cotto both names that have been thrown around by Top Rank. Miguel Cotto is a logical matchup for Top Rank to make, keeping all of the profits in house because both fighters work under the Top Rank banner. In terms of a possible fight with Sergio, it will be a cold day in hell before they let Chavez anywhere close to Sergio. Chavez is making strides in his recent fights, looking to be a force as a pressure fighter with actual power. Yet, Sergio Martinez has all the tools to absolutely positively destroy a fighter like Chavez. Sergio has developed big power, has great stamina, and is a defensive cutie. These are the tools needed to completely embarrass a fighter like Chavez. Chavez already draws a ton of people and really does not need a paper title. Martinez's promoter Lou DiBella knows this fact, and it looks like he is angling for a deal with Bob Arum.

"Chavez must fight Sergio next. No interim fights. He has to fight Sergio next or Bob Arum must work out a deal with me. He can't take the Feburary fight without being stripped or unless Top Rank and DiBella agree. Obviously I'll be having conversations with both HBO and Arum."

The key part of that statement is "or Bob Arum must work out a deal with me." DiBella knows that Chavez is not fighting Martinez and is trying to get some money out of it or some other conciliation out of this situation. The most likely outcome is that Chavez takes on Cotto and that Sergio becomes the full WBC titlist. Chavez is a walking pile of money and Arum is not going to risk that on a fight with Martinez. Bob can deal with Chavez Jr. losing to Cotto, but being embarrassed by Martinez will severely undercut Chavez's moneymaking potential.

Another move by the WBC was to mandate a rematch between Chad Dawson and Bernard Hopkins. This would be another terrible fight and everyone knows it. I would like to see Dawson go for a rematch with Jean Pascal on the undercard and have Hopkins take on Lucian Bute at a catchweight. Unfortunately, it was Gary Shaw that convinced the WBC to order a rematch, meaning that Dawson probably has no plans to go after Pascal. Dawson cannot draw anywhere so I guess he needs a title to justify big purses.

What do you guys think are the best matchups for each of these guys: Martinez, Hopkins, Dawson, and Chavez Jr.?