Time To Hail César

But by early next year, JC will have no one left to conquer as a lightweight and will move up, one division at a time. After a tune-up at junior welterweight, Chávez will challenge either Marlon Starling or Mark Breland (whose rematch is scheduled for April) for the WBA welterweight crown.

As a world champion, Chávez now seems more at home in the frenzied glitter of Mexico City, and his trips home to Culiacán are more infrequent. When he does go home, says Chávez's 23-year-old wife, Alba Amalia, who spends most of her time in Culiacán, "he shuts himself up to watch videos of himself."

While JC studies his moves on the screen, Julio César Jr., a.k.a. Pelóncito, or Little Baldy, who is almost two years old, is already beginning to practice moves of his own. Furiously shadowboxing—short punches to the body, it should be noted—he mimes a knockout and raises his hands, yelling "¡Campeón! ¡Campeón!"

"Just like his father," says Alba Amalia a little sadly. "In love with fighting...in love with winning."