Jacobs wins by TKO as Chavez quits after five

PHOENIX -- Daniel Jacobs forced Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. to quit after the fifth round Friday at Talking Stick Report Arena in Phoenix.

When the fight abruptly ended, the largely Mexican and American crowd made it known that they were not too pleased by pelting the ring with debris.

The scene was reminiscent of Chavez’s preparations for the fight. He came in overweight and he required a temporary restraining order to fight after he refused to take a random drug test.

Chavez was 172.7 pounds at the weigh-in, nearly whopping five pounds over the 168-pound super middleweight limit. He had to forfeit $1 million of his purse for the fight to continue.

Also, Chavez refused a Voluntary Anti-Doping Association random drug test on Oct. 24, which forced Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn to move the bout from Las Vegas to Phoenix. Furthermore, Hearn inked former middleweight world title challenger Gabriel Rosado to fight on the undercard. Had Chavez been removed from the fight, Rosado would have faced Jacobs.

"They won't let me enjoy my victory," Jacobs said as debris flew into the ring. "I never ran and I never will, but I will duck these beer cans."

Jacobs (36-3, 30 KO’s), 32, of Brooklyn, returned to his winning ways after losing a one-sided decision to Canelo Alvarez in a 160-pound title unification bout in May. Jacobs had been having trouble making 160-pounds for years, so he moved up to super middleweight to face Chavez, who also is a former middleweight world champion.

But instead of facing a man in the same weight class as he, Jacobs was likely facing a cruiserweight, and felt it during the fight.

"To me it wasn't my debut at super middleweight because to me he was a cruiserweight," Jacobs said. "Even his jab was heavy. Physically, he was a bigger man, so I tried my best to be elusive and box, but he was heavy. I did my best to counter him and slowly but surely I got my counterpunches in there and he quit."

Chavez, as usual, made excuses, and penned an Oscar-esque monologue on how he was close to winning a fight he was clearly losing.

"I was getting close but got head-butted above the left eye," Chavez said. "Then I had problems because of all the blood. I came over to the corner and couldn't breathe. He elbowed me and head-butted me. Very tough fight. I felt I couldn't go because I couldn't breathe properly. The ref wasn't calling anything.

"I apologize to the fans. I'd love to have a rematch. I got head-butted. He fought a dirty fight and (the referee) didn't even take a point away. He would have been able to continue doing the dirty work."

Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., who had his hands in his face after the fight, supported his son.

"With all due respect to the fans of Phoenix, Arizona, I disagree with you. My son was making a competitive fight and he was winning," Chavez Sr. wrote on social media. "Unfortunately, he was head-butted and elbowed. He has a broken nose and will undergo surgery now."

Chavez (51-4-1, 33 KO’s), 33, of Mexico, was successful at the outset. He used his size advantage to bully Jacobs in the first two rounds. Jacobs, in the third round, got his jab going, and the brakes began to churn for Chavez

In the fourth round, Jacobs got into a rhythm and started to tag Chavez more to the head and to the body.

While Chavez had some success in the fifth round, Jacobs cut him over the left eye and gave him a bloody nose.

Chavez indicated to referee Wes Melton that he did not want to continue. When Melton waved off the fight, fans tossed beers, food, and other debris into the ring, some of which hit members of the DAZN broadcast team.

According to CompuBox, Jacobs landed 61 of 223 punches (27 percent), and Chavez landed 35 of 116 (30 percent)

The last three years for Chavez has been nothing short of pathetic.

He landed just 71 punches in a shutout decision to Alvarez in May 2017. Since then, Chavez knocked out journeyman Evert Bravo in the first-round of a light heavyweight fight on Aug. 10 in Mexico.

By quitting yet again, just like he did against Andrzej Fonfara in April 2015, Chavez will likely never be seen in a major bout again — only God can hope. back in a major fight.

For Jacobs, however, the possibilities are endless. He could potentially get a title shot against WBA super champion Callum Smith or WBO titlist Billy Joe Saunders. Those fights would be easy to make, as all of them fight on the DAZN platform, and are promoted by Hearn.

For now, Jacobs is happy he got the victory, regardless of how it was achieved.

"I am comfortable with the victory. Obviously, they won't let me enjoy it," Jacobs said of the crowd. "I know they're not mad at me. They're mad at Chavez, but I did my part."