Julio Cesar Chavez Jr life took a fortunate turn on June 11 of last year. That day in a Los Angeles court, a judge dropped charges of illegal weapons possession and basically gave the popular Mexican fighter a new chance to rebuild his life. Today, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. is not only doing well, but also apparently in good mental health and in high spirits. The 39-year-old is once again a major attraction in the boxing business. The legend's son faces influencer-fighter Jake Paul this Saturday in a fight at the Honda Center in Anaheim that has gradually gained public interest. Both fighters made the regulatory weight of 200 pounds (cruiserweight) for their 10-round bout. Paul (11-1, 7 KOs) weighed 199.4 pounds, while Chávez Jr. (54-6-1, 34 KOs) stopped the scale at 198.4 pounds. The event will be broadcast worldwide on DAZN on a pay-per-view basis.

For Julio César, simply being back in the ring for an event of this magnitude is a huge victory considering all his personal issues in recent years that have led him to dangerous mental instability, much obscurity, and an arrest in January 2024.

“I’m very happy, proud to be able to move forward, improve day by day, and try to be the best version of myself,” said Chavez Jr. in a recent interview with La Opinion. “As a person, I have an opportunity like this, and after everything that happened to me and everything, I’m very happy, excited, and enjoying the training, which is the hardest part.”

During the first half of the previous decade, Chavez Jr. won a world championship and was involved in several title fights that captured the attention of boxing fans. His career had been delicately directed by his promoter Bob Arum and carried a lot of popular interest due to the legacy of his legendary father, JC Chávez.

Unlike those good years of the Sinaloan, now he has young children who can see him with the gloves on leading an important card and in an arena like the Honda Center.

“It’s an example I’m setting for my children; they’re young,” Chávez Jr. said in response to a direct question. “I want to put on a good fight so they can get their name out there, and of course, the example I’m setting for my children and my family by playing sports. Staying in good shape is very important. Everything has helped me; I’ve felt excellent, and I still want to continue doing the same.”

“Junior” faced Canelo Álvarez in 2017 in a mega-event where he had a disappointing performance. Two years later, he retired in the fifth round of a heated fight with Daniel Jacobs due to a broken nose. And in 2020, he lost by technical decision to Mario Cazares. Then, the beating he suffered in 2021 against 46-year-old Anderson Silva seemed to be the end of him as a professional boxer. Then came those complicated years for him outside the ring, with depression, visits to rehabilitation centers, and countless disturbing videos on his social media. Chavez Carrasco has only had one fight in the past three and a half years, which took place last July after emerging victorious in a Los Angeles court. For all the above reasons, his return to the ring this Saturday becomes an encouraging story, an important comeback in his life, and a golden opportunity. "Very happy, motivated, it's pure blessings that people send you," he said in the interview with La Opinion about the unconditional support of his fans; in good times and bad. “That’s why I’m here now, training hard, even though a lot of people say, ‘No, why bother? It’s too late, he should retire now. ’ I think on the contrary, the support from the people motivates me, and I feel like I still have something more to give in boxing, and that’s why I’m putting my all into it, to give it to the people.”

Throughout his career, Julio César Chávez Jr. has been labeled at times as someone who didn’t really want to be a boxer but had to because of the Chávez name. He clarifies it once again:

“It’s like, I imagine that Michael Jordan’s son, the sons of soccer players and all that, well, they want to be soccer players or basketball players. In my case, well, I wanted to be a boxer because I thought that was the ultimate; I liked it, I’ve always liked boxing, I dedicated myself to boxing because I simply liked it and that’s how it was.”

As for his rival, Chávez Jr. expresses respect, he believes Jake Paul, 28 years old, is learning to box, but he believes he can dominate him due to his greater experience as a boxer.

“I think he prepares well physically, he puts effort into what he does, but that’s all,” said the Mexican. “Something important is that with experience and time, the ring becomes more familiar, so we’re going to try to take him to places we know he hasn’t been.”

It remains to be seen if this mature Chavez Jr. He can do it and pull off a real upset. But even if he can't, he can still see himself as a winner in Anaheim.