One of the biggest draws in boxing takes to the ring on Saturday night at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas when Julio Cesar Chavez Jr defends his WBC middleweight title against the no.1 contender - Mexican knockout artist Marco Antonio ''El Veneno'' [The Venomous One] Rubio. It should be the toughest test yet for the son of one the biggest icons in the history of Mexican boxing. Despite years of criticism, Chavez Jr has looked increasingly impressive since employing the services of top trainer Freddie Roach, the man who looks after ring superstar Manny Pacquiao and Britain's number one boxer Amir Khan among others. Chavez Jr will need to be at his absolute best to turn back the challenge of Rubio, a fighter rated as the hardest puncher in the middleweight division.

31 year old Rubio [53-5-1, 46 KOs] is a 12 year ring veteran, and is on a ten bout winning streak [9 KOs] since coming up short in a 2009 WBC/WBO middleweight title shot against the then champion Kelly Pavlik, when despite putting up a brave effort, he was withdrawn by his corner after nine rounds.

In terms of style, Rubio is a textbook boxer with a lethal left hook and potent straight right hand. In his most recent outing, he destroyed the heavily tattooed, super tough Matt Vanda in five rounds, the same Matt Vanda who twice gave Chavez Junior tough fights including taking him to a split decision first time around. Vanda - a brave warrior with a similar style and mindset to the likes of Michael Katsidis and Arturo Gatti without the same level of skill - had been stopped just once before in his career some seven years earlier, and had gone the distance with a whole host of quality middleweights including John Duddy and Peter Manfredo Jr, yet Rubio blew him away convincingly.

Rubio was completely dominated by Pavlik in their February 2009 title fight, failing to win a single round on any of the judges scorecards. One must remember that in 2009, Pavlik was still a major force at 160 pounds, and at 6'2" was simply a bigger version of Rubio himself, employing a similar fighting style based around a classic orthodox defense, left jab, hard right cross and fast left hook.

The fact that Rubio managed to stick around for so long and was still standing after nine rounds of punishment against one of the most pulverizing punchers in boxing is testament to the toughness of the Mexican, and proves that it would be foolhardy to judge his punch resistance on a pair of knockout losses sustained early in his career.

Rubio is a much slicker boxer than Chavez Jr, and arguably a more potent puncher. At 5'10", he is a classic size for a middleweight, but has a somewhat spindly physique and will surrender a significant physical advantage to Chavez Jr, who is officially listed at 6' but looks taller, and weighs as much as 180 lbs on fight night.

25-year-old Chavez Jr [44-0-1, 31 KOs] is the son of the great Julio Cesar Chavez, a six time world champion in three weight classes who retired with a record of 107-6-2, and defeated the likes of Ruben Castillo, Roger Mayweather, Rocky Lockridge, Juan Laporte, Rafael Limon, Jose Luis Ramirez, Meldrick Taylor, Hector Camacho, Greg Haugen, Terrance Alli, Frankie Randall, Tony Lopez and many others during his illustrious career.

Many an offspring has found living in the shadow of a fabulously successful parent stifling and intimidating, but Chavez Jr has embraced his legacy. He has carved out a highly successful career of his own, and is the second biggest boxing attraction [behind WBC light middleweight champion Saul Alvarez] in a country with a population of 112 million people, with massive appeal on both sides of the US/Mexican border.

Chavez Jr had no amateur experience, yet told his father he wanted to box when he turned 16. Chavez Sr watched his son spar several rounds with seasoned fighters before giving him his blessing. Turning pro in March 2003, Chavez Jr learned his trade on the lamb, fighting often against second rate opponents. As the opposition was steadily upgraded over the years, the victories became harder and the knockouts less plentiful, but he kept on winning.

There was a scare in December 2005 when Carlos Molina snapped that winning streak at 23-0 by holding Chavez Jr to a draw, but he was defeated in a hard fight two months later. The youngster continued winning, and while the records of his opponents began looking better, they still remained average fighters at best.

Chavez Jr survived another close call in July 2008 when Arturo Gatti wannabe Matt Vanda battled him to a split decision. As with Molina three years earlier, Chavez Jr to his credit gave Vanda an immediate rematch, this time winning a comfortable decision.

By 2010, Chavez Jr was rated by the WBC, and despite constant criticism and accusations of over protection, the baby faced kid could clearly fight a bit. Freddie Roach, arguably the greatest trainer of his generation was drafted in by Chavez Jr's promoter Bob Arum to bolster the young Mexican's ring-craft and stamina and the results were immediately apparent. In his first fight under Roach's tutelage, Chavez Jr unanimously outpointed the highly regarded Irishman John Duddy in a WBC title eliminator.

Last June, Chavez Jr displayed toughness, dogged determination and a consistent body attack to win a controversial majority decision and the WBC middleweight title from the previously unbeaten German Sebastian Zbik at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The fight was extremely close, and the majority of experts seemed to edge towards Zbik, but nevertheless it was an impressive performance by Chavez Jr against a genuine, world-class middleweight.

Last November, Chavez Junior defended his title successfully with a fifth round TKO over Peter Manfredo Jr in a thrilling fight. The American seemed to be on top in the fifth round when Chavez Jr turned the bout on its head with one stunning right hand, and his follow-up barrage forced the referee to stop the contest.

Many experts believe that the power, accuracy and superior technique of Rubio will be too much for Chavez Jr. However, I personally think that Rubio is somewhat overrated, with the vast majority of his knockout wins scored against second rate fighters. Chavez Jr may not be in the Floyd Mayweather caliber of defensive wizardry, but his defense is sound, as is his chin. He hits hard with both hands, particularly to the body, and despite his angelic appearance, loves to get into a brawl with his opponent.

I see Rubio having some success with the straight right hand, rocking Chavez Jr several times during the fight. However I don't think one shot will be enough to put the young Mexican down, and Rubio will find it extremely hard to follow up against such a bigger, stronger opponent.

Chavez Jr will gradually wear down Rubio and take control of the fight in the middle rounds. By round eight he will be looking for the victory, and in the 10th round his consistent attack will see the referee stop the fight in Chavez Jr's favor.

Chavez Jr by TKO in 10.

Big Fight Odds: Julio Cesar Chavez Jr 2/7, Marco Antonio Rubio 11/4 skyBET