Chavez wins first world title with majority decision over Zbik

Just like his soon to be Hall of Fame Father, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. won his first world championship in his forty-third bout as he scored a twelve round majority decision over Sebastian Zbik to wrestle the WBC Middleweight title at Staples Center Los Angeles.

Not much was known about Zbik other then he was a fundamentally sound technician and he proves that to be the case as he was an active fighter who had an accurate right hand. Chavez started his patented body shots. Alot of the rounds were similar with Chavez getting in his body and Zbik landing combinations. Chavez got through in round five as he wobbled Zbik with a solid overhand right.

The fight had action in every round as Chavez pulled slightly ahead due to his assault on the flanks of Zbik. As the rounds went on, those body shots began to dig deeper in Zbik and there was still some doubt as Zbik landed and threw more shots.

Chavez, 160 lbs of Culican, MX won by scores of 116-112; 115-113 and 114-114 to become a champion with a record of 43-0-1. Zbik, 158 3/4 lbs of Hamburg, Germany is now 30-1.


Miguel Angel “Mikey” Garcia scored a fourth round stoppage over late replacement Rafael Guzman in round four of a scheduled ten round Featherweight bout.

Guzman, who took the bout in just three days notice after Miguel Beltran Jr. had to bow out due to an injury, came out in round one and used his 5’10” height to his advantage. Garcia needed just that one round ti get into his rhythm as he landed some nice right hands that opened up a cut over the right eye of Guzman. Garcia upped the power on his punches in three which was a prelude to come in the next frame. In that fourth round, Garcia landed a perfect right that dropped Guzman to the canvas. He had trouble getting to his feet and the fight was waved off at 1:58 of round four.

Garcia, 127 lbs of Oxnard, CA is now 26-0 with twenty-two knockouts. Guzman, 126 3/4 lbs of Guadalajara, Mexico is now 28-3.




MIKEY GARCIA TO FACE RAFAEL GUZMAN IN CO-MAIN EVENT TO ZBIK vs. CHÁVEZ JR.

LOS ANGELES (June 1, 2011) – Rafael “Chocho” Guzman is the new opponent for undefeated No. 1 featherweight contender Mikey Garcia in the co-main event of “The Son Also Rises: Sebastian Zbik vs. Julio César Chávez, Jr. World Middleweight Championship,” this Saturday at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles. The 10-round featherweight rumble will open the two-bout HBO Boxing After Dark broadcast at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast.)

Guzman (28-2, 20 KOs), of Guadalajara, México, will be making his U.S. debut when he faces Garcia. A former WBC FECARBOX super featherweight and lightweight champion, Guzman enters this fight having won 10 of his previous 11 bouts. His last three victories have been by knockout. Garcia’s original opponent, Miguel Beltrán Jr., was diagnosed with a fractured left hand and was forced to withdraw from the card. Garcia (25-0, 21 KOs), hails from Oxnard, Calif.

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Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Zanfer Promotions, Universum Media Network, TECATE and STAPLES Center, “The Son Also Rises: Zbik vs. Chávez, Jr. World Middleweight Championship” takes place This Saturday! June 4, at STAPLES Center, and marks the first fight Chávez Jr. has fought in Los Angeles in six years. HBO will televise the fight live, beginning at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast.)

Remaining tickets, priced at $100, $75 and $50, can be purchased online at www.staplescenter.com, via Ticketmaster charge-by-phone lines at (800) 745-3000, or at the STAPLES Center box office.

The world championship event will be highlighted by a celebration of the boxing career of Julio César Chávez, who will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame the following week.




Garcia to take on Beltran Jr. on Chavez / Zbik card


Dan Rafael of espn.com is reporting that undefeated Featherweight Mikey Garcia will take on once beaten Miguel Beltran Jr. as the televised co-feature of the June 4 WBC Middleweight showdown featuring Julio Cesar Chavez and Sebastian Zbik, spurning down a title opportunity against Billy Dib.

“It’s a good fight because styles make fights,” said Carl Moretti of Top Rank, Garcia’s promoter. “Beltran is a little bit bigger than Mikey. It can’t help but be a good fight.”

“They decided to not pursue the vacant IBF title fight against the worst television fighter in history,” Moretti said. “HBO wasn’t going near it and refers to Dib as the worst television fighter, and I don’t disagree. It’s a tough sell in today’s market. Mikey won’t have the opportunity with the IBF in his next fight, but I have no doubt he will fight for a title and win one.

“Anyone can fight for a belt, but looking good and moving on is where you make money and grow and cement your reputation. I think that passing on a fight with Billy Dib in Staples Center in a fight that would have been ugly to watch was a good move in the long run,” Moretti said.

“Mikey, more than anything, wants to be a champion, but passing on another HBO fight, it was just too much to give up,” said Garcia’s manager Cameron Dunkin. “He considers it an honor to be on HBO and he would never ever turn that down. Although he wants the IBF title and is thankful to them for making him the No. 1 contender, this wasn’t a 10-second decision. He said he can’t give up HBO for anything. It hurt him to give up the title shot, but he said that nothing touches being on HBO, especially to come right back and have a second fight in a row on HBO. He knows he will get his title shot eventually.”