Arum Speaks on Chavez: Cotto Could Happen in October, Martinez Glossed Over

Sergio Martinez wants to get right to a fight with new WBC middleweight titlist Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, but that, as most expect, will have to "wait," apparently. Bob Arum told Michael Marley that Martinez's promoter Lou DiBella needs to build up Martinez more:

"Now DiBella called me (to complain) but I still say this," Arum said. "I still say that DiBella has to get off his ass and stop waiting for HBO to build Martinez up. The guy is 35 years old, you can’t wait around." ... "Eventually, it can happen but not now. But they have to build Martinez up where some people, other than the boxing writers, know who he is."

Find one fighter on Chavez's record who is a bigger star than Sergio Martinez. Please, I dare you. Find one. All Arum is really saying here is, "We're scared to death of the things Martinez would do to Chavez. We couldn't even really hope to get out with a 'valiant effort' sort of loss. So, uh, he's not a star!"

But at the very least, Arum is looking still to match Chavez with a guy who is a star, Puerto Rico's Miguel Cotto. That fight could happen in early October. Cotto currently holds a title at 154 pounds, but he's very small for the division and has only fought punchless Yuri Foreman and weathered Ricardo Mayorga at junior middleweight. Chavez weighed 180 pounds in the ring last night against Zbik, and at 6'0" is positively huge next to the 5'7" Cotto. It's a fight where the far lesser-skilled Chavez could, potentially, have overwhelming physical advantages that allow him to basically march through a superior fighter who has some rub left to give. Or at least, from the Chavez side, that would be the hope. I think for most of us it's a transparent matchup, but a big part of me would still favor Cotto to tear up Chavez, especially if Cotto can demand the fight at a catchweight or even all the way down at 154. And I don't know that he'd take it at the full 160, where Chavez can rehydrate so dramatically.