Pros react after Anderson Silva defeats Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

Former UFC champion Anderson Silva returned to the squared circle this evening at Jalisco Stadium in Guadalajara, for a boxing match with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

Silva (34-11 MMA, 2-1 Boxing) was returning to combat sports for the first time since suffering a TKO loss to Uriah Hall in his final Octagon appearance at UFC Vegas 12 in October of 2020.

Ahead of the bout, ‘The Spider’ expressed how happy he was to be returning to the sport of boxing after nearly sixteen years away.

“It’s an amazing sport, boxing is a traditional sport,” Anderson Silva said on Just Scrap Radio. “I’m lucky I have this opportunity to fight in boxing against an amazing name and be on the same card as Julio Cesar Chavez and fight his son. I’m so happy.”

As for Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, the Mexican standout predicted that he would ultimately put ‘The Spider’ to sleep.

“I think the knockout is a great possibility in that fight. Because it’s (180lbs), the day of the fight, both will weigh 190 or 200, so it’s a heavyweight fight,” Chavez Jr. said to MMAFighting. “I don’t know how he can take my punches. I feel I can knock him out. I’m not confident in only one punch but breaking him down, go to the body and head and I think I have a lot of possibilities to knockout him.”

Chavez Jr. had actually missed weight for tonight’s contest and was thus forced to forfeit $100k of his fight purse to Anderson Silva.

Anderson Silva vs Julio Cesar Chavez Jr

Tonight’s Chavez Jr. vs Silva bout proved to be a fun and entertaining affair. After a bit of a feeling out process in round one, ‘The Spider’ appeared to get his confidence flowing in round two. By the time round three rolled along, Anderson Silva was back to his taunting ways, much to the delight of the fans in attendance. That trend seemingly continued in the later stages of the fight, and after 8 rounds of action most viewers had scored the bout in favor of Silva.

Official Result: Anderson Silva def. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. by split-decision (77-75, 75-77, 77-75)

Check out how the pros reacted to Silva defeating Chavez Jr. below:

https://twitter.com/btbshowtime/status/1406462485536731136

I know JCC Jr isn’t what he once was and never quite lived up to his name, but this is by far the best moment for a MMA fighter in a boxing ring. And for it to be Silva, who campaigned for this chance for a decade, is pretty sweet.

— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) June 20, 2021

Congratulations @SpiderAnderson you are a STUD!!!

— Big John McCarthy (@JohnMcCarthyMMA) June 20, 2021

https://twitter.com/thefrankmir/status/1406472211611807745

Holy crap @SpiderAnderson just beat Chavez Jr. They gave him a Split Decision, but it was a runaway win no doubt for Silva. Should have been no more than 6-2 for Silva

— Big John McCarthy (@JohnMcCarthyMMA) June 20, 2021

#virtuallyidentical pic.twitter.com/dhhmokP7Xs

— Mike Goldberg (@GoldieOnTV) June 20, 2021

https://twitter.com/bjpenndotcom/status/1406475952054484997

What was your reaction to Anderson Silva defeating Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. this evening in Mexico? Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!