Sources have informed us that Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach may no longer be in the corner of WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. The two first began working together about two years ago, prior to Chavez Jr.'s unanimous decision victory over John Duddy. Since that time, Chavez Jr. has steadily improved in his performances, yet rumors have continued to surface about the possibility of Roach being replaced. According to multiple sources, that time may have now come ahead of what many believe may be his most difficult challenge when he faces once-beaten middleweight contender Andy Lee on June 16 in El Paso, Texas.
It's unclear as to exactly why Roach may no longer be working with Chavez Jr. After completing the first part of his training camp in his hometown of Culiacan, for whatever reason, Chavez Jr. decided to move his camp to the Top Rank Gym in Las Vegas, Nevada as opposed to the Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood, California, as he's done in the past, where Freddie Roach is already working with Manny Pacquiao and Amir Khan. In Roach's place, Jr.'s father, the legendary Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., has been overseeing the boxing workouts conducted by assistant trainer Vladimir Baldenebro. Strength & conditioning coach Alex Ariza was also noticeably absent from camp during a recent workout at Top Rank Gym. At the time of this writing, Roach, Ariza and members of Team Chavez could not be reached for comment, but check back soon for more information as this story develops.
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