cuadrilátero

It took Julio César Chávez Jr. three rounds to throw an accurate punch, three more to show he was awake and three more to remember he could fight. The Mexican boxer’s effort was not enough and he lost by unanimous decision to Jake Paul, who showed many defensive deficiencies that Chávez — a former middleweight champion — did not take advantage of.

While Chávez was slowly reacting to his opponent, Paul (12-1, 7 KOs) was scoring points, forcing the son of Mexican legend Julio César Chávez to row against the current in the bout’s final rounds. Julio César Chávez Jr. seemed disconnected in the early rounds and spent time complaining to the referee about alleged headbutts and ill-intentioned punches from his opponent.

“I reacted too late,” said Chávez (54-7-1, 34 KOs) after Saturday night’s bout at the Honda Center in Anaheim, where his frustrated father was among the fans. Julio César Chávez frequently stood up from his seat and shouted directions to his eldest son.

“He’s a strong fighter and after the first three or four rounds, he got tired, so I think he’s not ready for championship fights, but he’s a good fighter,” Julio César Chávez Jr. said of Paul — a YouTube star turned boxer — after the loss.

Despite his poor start and loss, Chávez was not booed. Paul earned that right from the first moment cameras captured his walk to the ring before the fight began.

The decibels erupted when Paul appeared wearing the colors of the Mexican flag on his robe as he walked to the ring to the rhythm of Kilo’s “Dance Like a Cholo.”

“It’s one of the songs I used to dance to when I was a kid,” Paul said during a news conference after the fight.

Paul did it, he said, in honor of Mexican legend Julio César Chávez.

“It was an ode to his father,” Paul assured. “I wore the same outfit as his dad every time I walked to the fights. It’s a respect to his dad. But also, when I got in the ring, I said, ‘I’m going to be your daddy tonight.’”

(Etienne Laurent / Associated Press)

After speaking with reporters, Paul improvised a face-off when he crossed paths with Gilberto Ramirez, the evening’s co-main event. Ramirez is the World Boxing Assn. (WBA) and World Boxing Organization (WBO) cruiserweight champion after defending his belts against Cuba’s Yuniel Dorticos.

Ramirez is not exactly a fighter known for creating an intense pre-fight atmosphere, but he presents another opportunity for Paul to cement himself as a legitimate boxer. Paul has said he has faced difficulty scheduling fights after his unconventional move from YouTube stunts to sanctioned boxing.

“I still want to do it. I’m used to these guys not being good promoters and at the end of the day, I’m going to fight these guys,” Paul said. “Today, I feel like it was the first day of my boxing career, I’m just warming up and this is the second chapter from here on out.”

Paul has been consistently criticized for not facing trained boxers. Chávez was just the third boxer Paul has faced in his 13 fights since debuting in January 2020. In 2024, 58-year-old legend Mike Tyson was the second fighter he faced.

Paul’s only loss came at the hands of Tommy Fury in February 2023.

“I don’t think I was a fighter at the time, I was barely two and a half years into the sport,” Paul said, reflecting on his start in the sport and loss to Fury. “I didn’t really know what I was doing. I didn’t have the right equipment around me, the right conditioning. My lifestyle outside of the ring was still like that of a YouTuber, a famous actor or whatever it was at that point in time. I wasn’t completely focused on boxing.

”… Chapter one is over today and now I’m moving on to chapter two. … People still hold the Tommy Fury fight against me, but now I’ve beaten a former world champion and I’m coming to collect on that loss to Tommy.”

Jake Paul, right, punches Julio César Chávez Jr. during their cruiserweight boxing match on Saturday at the Honda Center.

(Etienne Laurent / Associated Press)

In the co-feature, Ramirez (48-1, 30 KOs) defended his cruiserweight titles against mandatory challenger Dorticos (27-3, 25 KOs). Ramirez won by unanimous decision after the judges’ scorecards read 115-112, 115-112, 117-110.

“I think it was a good performance, he can hit. I don’t know why it was so close in the scores, but it is what it is,” Ramírez said.

He is eager to lock in a unification fight against International Boxing Federation (IBF) champion Jai Opetaia.

“We’re going to unify titles,” Ramirez said. “I just had to follow my plan, listen to my corner and get the job done, that’s all.”

Although Ramirez entered the fight as the favorite to defend his belts, the Mexican was slow, allowing the scores to be closer than expected. Dorticos was decisive in the early rounds, but as time went on, Ramirez made up ground. Dorticos lost a point after the referee penalized him for connecting consecutive low blows.

Making her return to professional boxing after a 12-year absence, former UFC champion and ring veteran Holly Holm (34-2-3, 9 KOs) faced undefeated Mexican Yolanda Vega Ochoa (10-1, 1 KOs) in a 10-round bout. Holm dominated from the start, setting the pace with her jab, controlling her opponent’s attack and using precise combinations. Vega opted to press, but landed constant clean punches and was unable to connect meaningful combinations that would turn the tide of the fight.

Holm won by unanimous decision, with all three judges scoring the fight 100-90. Her performance was resounding because of her tactical control, mobility and ability to neutralize Vega’s offense, who was unable to break her strategy or avoid the cleaner punches.

“I love kicking so much that I loved MMA for a while, but then I started to feel a growing pain from wanting to box again, so it’s been fun to come back and just get those boxing arms going,” Holm said. “I only sparred in wrestling shoes twice, I was barefoot the whole camp, I was looking for my groin protector the day I flew in, it was in the dumpsters in my garage. I’m still training with the same team, with the same trainers, I did the whole camp. I haven’t sparred in a ring in I don’t know how long, so this feels great.”

With a great combination and a powerful uppercut, Mexican Raúl Curiel (16-0-1, 14 KOs) knocked down Uruguayan Victor Rodríguez (16-1-1, 9 KOs) in the fourth round and although the Uruguayan managed to get to his feet, he did not have the power to stop an onslaught from Curiel. The referee stopped the fight at the 2:09 mark during the fourth round.

The fight determined the mandatory challenger for the World Boxing Assn. (WBA) welterweight title.

“It was an eliminator for the title, so I pushed myself,” said Curiel, a Tampico, Tamaulipas, native. “I knew it would end in knockout. I didn’t know which round, but knockout. I was strong.”

Rodríguez finished the fight in bad shape, with his nose injured and one eye swollen and bleeding.

Now Curiel wants to fight Rolando Romero, the WBA welterweight champion who most recently beat Ryan Garcia by unanimous decision in May.

“With whoever, whatever champion is available,” Curiel said. “Let’s fight Rolly. We fight all the champions.”

Welterweight Julian Rodríguez (24-1, 15 KOs) earned a dramatic win over Avious Griffin (17-1, 16 KOs), who lost his undefeated record and at times appeared to be in control of the bout. With five seconds left in the 10th round, Rodríguez knocked Griffin down in such a way that he almost knocked him out of the ring.

The fight was mostly evenly matched and two of the judges had the bout as a draw, while the third gave Rodríguez the win by two points.

“All the sacrifice, all the pain to get to this point,” Rodriguez, who was clearly exhausted, said in the ring. “It was pure emotion. Now I’ll be back in the gym in the next two or three weeks.”

In a lightweight bout, Floyd Schofield (19-0, 13 KOs) wasted no time and in just 78 seconds of the first round took out veteran Tevin Farmer (33-9-1, 8 KOs). Schofield knocked Farmer down twice and the referee stopped the bout at the 1:18 mark.

In February, Schofield had a fight scheduled against World Boxing Council (WBC) champion Shakur Stevenson in Saudi Arabia, but he was unable to make it because he was hospitalized twice before that bout. Schofield has not explained the reasons for his hospitalization.

“I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders,” Schofield said after Saturday’s win over Farmer. “They doubted me since what happened in February, and a lot of people didn’t believe I would win this fight. It’s just a lot of excitement.”

Preliminary fight results

In a welterweight bout, Joel Iriarte defeated Kevin Johnson by unanimous decision: 78-74, 80-72, 79-74.

Bantamweight Alexander Gueche was the winner against Vincent Avina: 80-72, 80-72, 79-73.

At heavyweight, Joshua Edwards knocked out Dominic Hardy in the first round.

Super featherweight René Alvarado beat Víctor Morales by unanimous decision: 96-94, 99-91, 99-91.

John Ramírez defeated Josué Jesús Morales at bantamweight by unanimous decision: 79-73, 80-72, 80-72.

This article first appeared in Spanish via L.A. Times en Español.

Mauricio Sulaiman smiled as he recalled the call during which a boxing legend asked him to challenge current welterweight champion Mario Barrios.

The president of the World Boxing Council (WBC) did not think about it for a moment and immediately got to work to fulfill the request of the legendary Manny Pacquiao.

One of the most iconic and respected figures in boxing history is back.

“It was a positive call, I told him I wanted to challenge the champion one more time and that I can still fight. He was happy to hear that,” Pacquiao told L.A. Times en Español.

Manny Pacquiao speaks about his boxing comeback at a news conference in Los Angeles on June 3.

(Greg Beacham / Associated Press)

Sulaiman fulfilled “PacMan’s” wish and his bout against “Aztec Warrior” Barrios will be on July 19 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

“He called me and said, ‘Help me fulfill my dream of retiring with the WBC, which was where I started at flyweight,’” Sulaiman said. “Manny’s relationship with the WBC is decades old, we’ve been in very good times and we’ve been in difficult times and now that he needs support, we are here for him.”

Born into poverty in the Philippines, Pacquiao became the only boxer to win world titles in eight different divisions, from flyweight to super welterweight. He defeated Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Juan Manuel Marquez, Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera.

His explosive style, speed and charisma made him a global idol, especially in Asia and Latin America. In addition to being world champion in multiple bodies (WBC, WBA, WBO, WBO, IBF), he was recognized as “Boxer of the Decade” by the Boxing Writers Assn. in 2010 and also developed a political career, becoming a senator in his country, which cemented his status as a national hero in the Philippines.

During his career, Pacquiao has suffered eight losses and two draws, but his impressive 62 victories — 39 of them by knockout — earned him a place in the Boxing Hall of Fame. He is being inducted in Canastota, N.Y., on June 8.

The former champion has been welcomed by the boxing world with open arms, but with caution.

Pacquiao claims his hand movements are just as quick as in his prime, but at 46, many doubt he is the same as before. In August 2021, Pacquiao lost a unanimous decision to Cuba’s Yordenis Ugás in what was then his last fight before retirement.

During the fight against Ugás, Pacquiao looked slow, unresponsive and in what seemed to be the twilight of his career. He said several issues caused his problems during the fight, among them, his political career, a lawsuit against him by his former promoter Paradigm Sports Management and muscle ailments that were further inflamed by a pre-fight massage.

Pacquiao did say whether he will be around to face more of boxing’s stars after his bout with Barrios.

“I’m still here, one at a time,” Pacquiao said. “This is me, if there are changes in my fighting style, I have to listen to my body, my heart and if my mind is also there, then I will know if I’m done.”

Manny Pacquiao wears the champion’s belt after defeating Brandon Rios during their WBO international welterweight title fight on Nov. 24, 2013, in Macau.

(Vincent Yu / Associated Press)

Since the announcement of his return, many have shown concern for what might happen to him in the ring against a younger and physically fit Barrios.

“I appreciate that they are concerned, however, the only people I worry about is my family,” Pacquiao said. “How I move, how I train, what kind of condition I’m in, they support me because they can still see the old Manny Pacquiao.”

During his four-year absence from boxing, he was dedicated to his family and his country as a politician, but he said he remained active and in good physical condition, so he feels his return to the ring will not be difficult.

“At my home in the Philippines, I have my own training facility, with a gym, two basketball courts, everything — pickleball, badminton, table tennis,” Pacquiao said. “Plus, I have a yard in the back of my house that’s a kilometer long where I run.”

Sixteen years separate Pacquiao and Barrios.

Pacquiao made his professional debut in January 1995, Barrios was born just four months later. That bout will pit experience versus youth.

Barrios may have more elements in his favor, such as his height, as he stands 6-feet tall while Pacquiao is 5-foot-5. Barrios’ reach is 71 inches, while Pacquiao’s reach is 67 inches.

“I’m younger, I have youth on my side, he has the experience, but I have to go out there and use all that advantage, my height, my speed, my timing, if I do that I can come out on top.”

Although the confirmation of the fight came as a surprise to many, Barrios was mentally prepared for the possibility. He knew that the return of a legend like Pacquiao was not an isolated rumor, but a latent option.

“At first, I really couldn’t believe it, but I had been told it could happen anytime in 2025,” recounted the San Antonio, Texas native, who has a record of 29 wins, two losses and one draw. “I thought the best thing to do was to be ready, in March I was told it could happen during the summer, then I felt it would definitely happen. He’s a legend, he’s achieved so much, but at the end of the day, he’s a fighter who wants to take my title.”

Yordenis Ugas punches Manny Pacquiao during a welterweight championship boxing match on Aug. 21, 2021, in Las Vegas.

(John Locher / Associated Press)

Pacquiao could have chosen a more accessible opponent for his comeback, someone who would allow him to regain his rhythm and confidence. But he chose Barrios, a champion in his prime.

“I don’t know if it’s an insult or complement,” Barrios reflected. “The type of fight he brings to the ring is a lot of action, I have to be smart, I shouldn’t let him succeed.”

While he respects Pacquiao’s legacy, Barrios is determined to impose his own stamp on a historic evening.

He is known for the way he arrives in the ring, accompanied by traditional Aztec dancers, as well as his colorful attire that represents his indigenous roots.

Barrios hopes to continue with his traditional entrance, but he said the occasion calls for something special.

“It’s going to be a very similar entry, always bringing the … ancestral strength,” Barrios said. “… I’m going to have all that, but we’re going to do something even bigger.”

This article first appeared in Spanish via L.A. Times en Español.