Julio Cesar Chavez Jr says he's ready for Sebastian Zbik on Saturday, and responds to old accusations that he's lazy in training and preparing for fights, which actually I haven't heard a lot of since he went to the Wild Card Gym, but I guess the perception remains. Chavez says that he's learned a lot from Freddie Roach, especially with conditioning, and that before nobody was teaching him anything.
I've tried really hard to get interested in this fight, but it's just not happening. Like I said on the podcast, I can't think of any recent HBO main event where I thought less of the two fighters involved. Chavez is a mediocrity with name value. Zbik, in my opinion, is simply a mediocrity. That a fight like this is for a major title is not all that wild, really -- but the fact that this is a major U.S. TV main event is unusual. For years the major networks passed on Chavez as a product of nepotism and little more, but now the TV wars are heating up and the kid has definitely proven he can hold a fanbase. It makes business sense, but part of me still finds it pretty lame.
I also really have no idea what to expect in this fight, so at least I have that going in. Chavez at times impresses me with the way he's improved, and I remind myself he's young, but that's not to say I think he's a real world class fighter, and my mind is made up that Zbik isn't no matter what happens Saturday.