JP/Agnes Winarti

“I am confident that I will be able to defend my title. So I expect to hold on to it for as long as I can before I turn 35, when I hope to hang up my gloves,” Chris, who turns 31 in September, told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

He also welcomed the possibility of a unification match against any of the reigning champions from other world boxing organizations.

“It would be prestigious if I could unify two or three different world championship belts,” Chris said.

He played down suggestions of moving up to the super featherweight division, saying it was not a priority.

“Too much is at stake if I move to a heavier class because I will have to give up my championship belt and start from scratch,” he said.

Chris is one of the few world boxing champions able to stretch their reign for seven consecutive years. Most champions in the WBA, World Boxing Organization (WBO), International Boxing Federation (IBF) and World Boxing Council (WBC) retain their titles for between one and two years.

Pedroza is perhaps the only boxer who fared better than Chris. The Panamanian defended his WBA featherweight title a record 19 times during his seven-year reign between 1978 and 1985.

Chris was crowned the WBA interim champion in 2003 after defeating Oscar Leon in Bali. He became WBA super champion at his 11th title defense in a draw against Rocky Juarez in March last year. In a rematch six months later, Chris outscored the American contender in Las Vegas.

After two delays in May and July this year, Chris will put his WBA crown on the line for the 13th time in November in Jakarta in a bout against Fernando David Saucedo of Argentina. However, Chris voiced doubts about the fight taking place.

“If he already has another bout scheduled in November, I might take the offer of fighting a different boxer in China,” said Chris, declining to identify his alternative opponent.

Chris’ fight against Saucedo was moved back from March in Bali to July in Jakarta after the Indonesian boxer suffered a shoulder injury during a sparring session.

However, three weeks prior to the July 26 match, Chris again requested a delay after his doctor discovered a fractured rib following another sparring session.

I have recovered 80 to 90 per-cent from the injury,” said Chris, who will start his training regime in early Septemer at his coach Craig Christian’s gym in Perth, Australia.

Despite the numerous problems he faced during his five-year partnership with Christian, including a lawsuit recently filed by boxing promoter Suryo Guritno over a cancelled fight against Australian boxer Jackson Asiku back in 2008, Chris said: “I still enjoy working with Christian and I trust him. I believe he has done his best for me.”

Chris brushed off speculation that his injuries were signs of declining stamina due to age. “Accidents can occur at any time. It has nothing to do with my age or stamina,” he said.

He said that he and his wife, Anna Maria Megawati, his former wushu teammate, planned to build a martial arts center in Semarang, Central Java, where they live.

“We can gather trainers from various martial arts, not just wushu and boxing, but also karate, silat and other disciplines to cater to the interests of martial arts hobbyists in Semarang,” he said, adding that the 700-square-meter center would likely be ready by next year.

Chris acknowledged that he and his wife were busy preparing for post-retirement life so as not to repeat the financial difficulties faced by many national athletes.

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