Chavez Jr. and Martinez Face Off in L.A!

While most of the boxing world was still up in arms on Tuesday over Jr. middleweight champ Saul “Canelo” Alvarez possibly taking on newly crowned welterweight champion Josesito Lopez on September 15th, Top Rank promotions officially announced their counter programming set for the same day.

WBC middlweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez jr. and Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez met at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles to officially announce their 12 round clash billed as “No Middle Ground”.

Top Rank’s Bob Arum and co-promoter Lou Di Bella kicked off the L.A media presser with a few words on what they are calling a “Super Fight”.

“This is the fight you’ve all been asking for” said Arum

“This is the kind of event that the sport needs” said Di Bella “We need to deliver to the fans, the biggest and best match-ups in the sport and there is no bigger fight in the middleweight division than Chavez vs. Martinez.”

Zanfer Promotions’ Fernando Beltran then stepped to the podium and may have took a jab at rival promoter Golden Boy and their card card.

“September 15th, there is no owner for that date” said Beltran “The best combination and the best fight owns that date. That’s why we will own that date. There is no other fight in the interest of the Mexican public for that date. We have the best two middleweights in the world fighting each other. We are not announcing Chavez vs. a TBA”

Before the two fighters had their say, Chavez Sr. opened up a few words for the Argentinian.

“I think the dream came true for Martinez” said Chavez Sr. “The truth is, there has been a lot of talk about this fight and with all due respect to all of you, Martinez has been talking a lot of bullshit. I think my son Julio is definitely going in to a difficult fight but we are confident in his qualities and strengths. I only want to say one thing to Sergio Martinez, with all my respect, In soccer Argentina always beats us but In Boxing, he knows perfectly well that Mexicans always beat Argentinians. Don’t forget that a Mexican has already knocked you out and why not have a second Mexican knock you out?”

Rocking a sport coat and pink V-neck shirt, Martinez was the first of the two fighters to step to the mic and took the time to respond to Chavez Sr.

“I want to thank Julio Chavez Jr. for accepting this difficult fight… Difficult for him” said Martinez, in English “I don’t know with whom I need to talk to or challenge because I’m not sure who is going to come to fight on that day, the father or the son” Martinez continued in Spanish “If (Chavez Sr. wants to recognize his son, he should take pictures now because after the fight he will not recognize him. I will beat him up. On September 15th I will take all of the feathers from his skin”

Finally, Chavez Jr. stepped to the mic and fired back.

“Martinez has said a lot of things that are not true. If anyone is being protected, It’s him. He is the one that’s friends with the WBC. I have no protection from the WBC. I’m the one that has been fighting the best. He’s here for the money.” said Chavez Jr. “As for him, as a fighter, he’s one of the best fighters in the middleweight division. It’s going to be a great fight and on September 15th I will be seen as a fighter. You will see the type of fighter I am. I have no doubt I will win. My question to him is, where will he go when he loses?”

Promoted by Top Rank, Zanfer Promotions and Di Bella Entertainment, in association with Wynn Las Vegas, AT&T and Tecate, tickets to the Chávez Jr. vs. Martinez World Middleweight Championship Event will go on sale This Thursday! July 12 at 3:00 p.m. ET / Noon PT. Priced at $600, $400, $200, $100, $75, $50 and $25, they can be purchased at the Thomas & Mack Center box office and Town Square Las Vegas Concierge. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.unlvtickets.com. To charge by telephone call (702) 739-FANS.

The Chávez Jr. vs. Martinez world championship telecast, which begins at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT, will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View and will be available to more than 92 million pay-per-view homes. HBO Pay-Per-View, a division of Home Box Office, Inc., is the leading supplier of event programming to the pay-per-view industry. Follow HBO Boxing news at www.hbo.com and at www.facebook.com/hboboxing. Use the hashtag #ChavezMartinez to join the conversation on Twitter.