Roach’s Intriguing Battle Plan for Chavez Jr.

Fast-rising fighter VANES MARTIROSYAN is a coming off a career-best win against Joe Greene in the co-main event for the June 5 mega-brawl in the ballpark BETWEEN YURI FOREMAN AND MIGUEL COTTO. During the bout, Martirosyan methodically exploited Greene’s weaknesses on his way to a unanimous decision win. It was a significant moment for the 24-year-old Armenian — and for his Hall of Fame trainer, Freddie Roach.

Roach’s famed Wild Card Gym, in Los Angeles, is now hosting another fighter seeking to make the kind of statement win that leads to title shots a la Martirosyan. His name: Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. The question: Can Roach do for Chavez in his June 26 fight with Irish bruiser John Duddy what Roach done thus far for Martirosyan?

Roach sees several keys to a Chavez victory. The first is as basic as it is essential: Chavez needs to be in shape. “Conditioning is gonna help him a lot,” said Roach, who also trains MANNY PACQUIAO and who was recently named “Trainer of the Decade” by the BOXING WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA. “Because he’s not gonna be worried about getting tired. So then he’s gonna execute much better.”

The other element is far more intriguing: Roach is going to make Martirosyan and Chavez sparring partners. “I’m gonna put him and Vanes in together,” said Roach. “Vanes is 27 and 0. [Note: Martirosayn jumped to 28 and 0 after beating Greene.] I mean, they could fight each other some day. But the thing is, right now, they’re gonna help each other get better.”

And as Roach knows as well as anyone in the game, you only get better by fighting the best.

 

Watch Chavez Jr training with Freddie…