KHALID YAFAI VS ROMAN GONZALEZ: GREAT AGAIN! ROMAN GONZALEZ ROLLS BACK THE YEARS

Khalid Yafai vs Roman Gonzalez:

Great Again: Roman Gonzalez Rolls Back The Years

The Big Fight Review

By Peter Silkov

Writer for The Boxing Glove

Greatness. An often overused word in the modern era of boxing, an era where greatness is probably harder to find than in just about any previous generation in the sport's history. Yet amongst the mediocrity and the disappointments greatness is still to be found if you know where to look. Roman 'Chocolatito' Gonzalez is a great fighter. A throwback fighter who would have been comfortable competing in any of the sports past era's. Roman has always had skills that are often overlooked. Little nuances that see him able to slip and block punches while coming forwards in one of his fearsome full-throttle attacks. He has always boxed with a kind of relaxed smoothness that only the greats can carry, champions like Jose Napoles and Roberto Duran had the same relaxed way about them as they moved in to destroy their opposition. As did Roman's fellow countryman, idol and former trainer when he was an amateur, Alexis Arguello.

Yet in recent Years Roman's career had crashed to earth spectacularly, and many of his former supporters had been left wondering if we had seen the end of him.

On Saturday night Roman did something which served to underline his greatness. He came back from defeat. After being written off by so many, Roman became a world champion for the 5th time, (the second time at Super-flyweight) after clinically breaking down Khalid Yafai, to take the WBA world super-flyweight championship.

In an era where that undefeated 0 is often seen as a mark of greatness by itself, no matter whom it has been defended against, many have lost sight of the fact that for almost all great ringmen of the past one abiding facet marking them out as special was their ability to come back from defeat.

In September 2016 Roman 'Chocolatito' Gonzalez was riding high in his career. He had just become the first Nicaraguan boxer to win world championships at four different weights, Minimumweight, Light-flyweight, Flyweight, and Super-flyweight. Gonzalez had also done it the hard way, beating the best in every division rather than cherry-picking a title before quickly moving on to a higher weight. 'Chocolatito's victory over Carlos Cuadras to win the WBC world Super-flyweight title had also solidified Roman's status in boxing as the number one pound for pound fighter in the world, a very rare status for a fighter of the lower weights

Yet just six months after his victory over Cuadras, in what was probably the greatest yet hardest won victory of his career, Gonzalez lost it all. 'Chocolatito' was outpointed after 12 bloody and ferocious rounds by Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, losing his WBC world Super-flyweight title, his unbeaten record, and his status as the best fighter in the world pound for pound. What had taken over a decade to build up was gone in one night.

Six months after their first fight Gonzalez met Rungvisai again, on September 9, 2017, and was shockingly knocked out in brutal fashion by the hard-hitting Thai. After he failed to win the rematch in such dramatic fashion, many feared that his days as a top-flight warrior were over. His lack of activity over the past three years seemed to underline this feeling.

Yet on Saturday night, in just his 2nd fight in 17 months, Gonzalez produced a brilliant display of skilled aggression to outhustle, outmaneuver, and outpunch defending champion Khalid Yafai, before finally dispatching him with a clinical right hand in the 9th round.

By coming back to the top like he has, Gonzalez's performance didn't simply revive his career, it has enhanced his legacy. After being unbeaten so long and being seen as indestructible Gonzalez had to face new fears after his defeats, he had to try and regain his stature without his former cloak of invincibility. During this time Gonzalez also had to deal with the sudden death of his long time trainer and father figure Arnulfo Obando just a few months after he had guided Roman to his record 4th world title over Carlos Cuadras. The loss of Obando in his life and in his corner had a devastating effect upon Gonzalez and a strong influence upon what happened in his two matches with Srisaket Sor Rungvisai. Many fighters, even some of the great ones, fail to rebound from such setbacks, others like Gonzalez do come back, and their return from defeat becomes part of their legacy.

Yafai was brave, yet from early on it was clear that Gonzalez was a level above him. The main question was, did Gonzalez at 32 and with just two fights in 2 and a half years have the fitness and stamina to keep up the terrific work rate that he was unleashing upon the defending champion. Yafai would have been wiser to try and stay on the outside and box but by the fourth round, it was clear that he just couldn't keep away from the little buzzsaw coming at him. Gonzalez came forward constantly, throwing punches with a merciless beautiful rhythm. Even the visible size advantage of the champion did nothing to dissuade 'Chocolatito'.

By the 6th Gonzalez was visibly breaking down the defending champion. Even the opening of a cut over the right eye from an accidental head-butt failed to stem Roman's attacks. If anything they just grew more intense.

The beginning of the end came near the end of the 8th round when a bombardment of blows sent Yafai down for the first time. Although he beat the count it was clear that he didn't have much left, if anything. Roman wasted no time when the bell rang to start the 9th and was soon upon the champion again, and a straight left followed by a swift right hand sent Yafai crashing down onto his back by the ropes, and the referee called the fight off as Yafai struggled to regain his feet.

It was a great victory for Gonzalez after what he has been through over the past 3 years. 'Chocolatito' did more than just win, he gave the kind of performance which seems to indicate that he has a lot more left than people suspected.

Sometimes we can write off the special fighters too quickly because we are so used to them being seemingly unbeatable. Gonzalez seems to have regained his passion and his confidence for fighting. Rather than looking like an old 'Chocolatito' Gonzalez looked pretty much like the old 'Chocolatito'. The man who terrorized four divisions over the course of a decade and 16 world title fights, the man who was once ranked pound for pound the best in boxing.

The victory over Yafai will not instantly return Gonzalez to the top of the pound for pound rankings, and if you wanted to be critical you could say that he took too many punches against Yafai and his own punches were not quite the venomous strikes of lightning which they were a few years ago. One of Gonzalez's main problems at 115 pounds is that he is more often than not facing fighters who look more like natural bantamweights or even featherweights, while he still looked like a slightly puffed up flyweight. It remains to be seen if Roman can overcome this discrepancy in his future fights. The future looks like it will be exciting at 115 pounds. Gonzalez announced straight after his victory that he wants to unify the world titles, the hunger to do great things is still within this little warrior. The other world titleholders at Super-flyweight are Gideon Buthelezi (IBO champion) Kazuto Ioka (WBO champion) Jerwin Ancajas (IBF champion) and Juan Francisco Estrada (WBC champion). By far the most attractive fight available for Gonzalez would be a match with Estrada, who holds the WBC title which once belonged to 'Chocolatito'. The two men have already fought once, back in 2012, when Gonzalez successfully defended his WBA world light-flyweight title against Estrada, winning on points after a fight which is regarded by boxing purists and hardcore followers as one of the fights of the past decade.

A rematch between the two men has ever since been much talked about and much-awaited. Now it may finally happen.

Estrada is now regarded as 'the man' at Super-flyweight after his points victory over 'Chocolatito's nemesis Rungvisai last April. Although he has spent much of his career as one of boxing's best-kept secrets, some now believe that Estrada is the superior boxer to Gonzalez today, even after Gonzalez's impressive victory over Yafai. The Mexican born Estrada is three years younger than Gonzalez, fresher, and the better all-round boxer. He also seems better suited than Gonzalez to the higher weight.

Yet as we saw on Saturday night, you write Roman Gonzalez off at your peril.

Just ask Khalid Yafai.

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Khalid Yafai vs Roman Gonzalez : LAST CHANCE FOR CHOCOLATITO

Khalid Yafai vs Roman Gonzalez
Last Chance For Chocolatito

The Big Fight Preview
By Peter Silkov

Writer for The Boxing Glove

WBA world super-flyweight championship. Yafai is making the 6th defense of his world title, but it is fair to say that he hasn't been setting the world on fire since he won the championship. title fights. 'Chocolatito' had put the 'little men' on the boxing map by becoming one of the very few flyweights to be recognized as the best boxer in the world pound for pound. One would have to go back to the days of the great Ricardo Lopez to find a flyweight/light-flyweight who had gained such wide recognition throughout the boxing world. Usually, boxing's lightest champions are only appreciated by the connoisseurs and hardcore boxing fans, but Gonzalez, with his exciting brand of skilled destructiveness, changed all that. Then it all went wrong for 'Chocolatito'. First, he lost his WBC Super-flyweight world championship to Srisaket Sor Rungvisai on March 18, 2017, on a very controversial points decision after a brutal war. Six months later the two men fought again, with 'Chocolatito' expected to avenge his dubious defeat, and regain his world title, however, Gonzalez crashed to a shocking and disastrous 4th round knockout defeat to the heard punching Thai, and in the eyes of many looked to be a spent force. Since that defeat almost two and a half years ago, 'Chocolatito' has fought just twice, winning both, but against lower-tier opposition. His most recent outing in December, a 2nd round stoppage of Diomel Diocos, was Gonzalez's first match in 15 months after having knee surgery. Tomorrow night (February 29) he faces the unbeaten Khalid Yafai, at the Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas, for Yafai's

WBA world super-flyweight championship. Yafai is making the 6th defense of his world title, but it's fair to say that he hasn't been setting the world on fire since he won the championship.

A clever boxer with a somewhat awkward style, Yafai has so far been retaining his title over somewhat limited opposition, without really impressing. Perhaps he's been needing a challenge from someone like Roman Gonzalez to really be able to bring the best out of himself?. Yafai often looks like a boxer who does just enough to win, and the better his opposition the better he performs, yet we still don't know just how good he is when pushed to his limit. If Gonzalez is anything like the fighter he used to be then we should find out tomorrow night whether Yafai is a genuine world-class 'world champion' or whether he falls a level below the elite. The biggest question is at the age of 32, how much does 'Chocolatito' have left in him. While the layoff at this point of his career may well have done him good, how much has a decade of fighting the best in 4 divisions taken out of Gonzalez. One of Gonzalez's problems is that he is a small super-flyweight. The other top men at the weight, including Yafai, are visibly bigger than him in height and build, and this natural size difference played a big part in the problems which Gonzalez had in his fights with Rungvisai and his war with Carlos Cuadras before that. While Gonzalez may not be able to make the flyweight limit anymore, he is still not a natural super-flyweight. Certainly, Gonzalez is suffering from the effects of competing at the very top for over a decade, despite his skills, the wear and tear of 17 world title fights is inevitable.

In recent training footage, Gonzalez looked noticeably slower than in the past. He will be hoping that he can summon up the strength and power to wear down and perhaps overpower Yafai in the later rounds. If Gonzalez is even just 70% of what he used to be then he will give Yafai a very tough night. Yafai is not a great puncher but is fast with an elusive awkwardness which could pose a lot of problems for 'Chocolatito' at this stage of his career. If Yafai sticks to his boxing, then he may well be able to outbox the faded Gonzalez, to win a competitive but clear decision. If Yafai chooses to try and slug it out with Roman, however, in an effort to impress, then he would be making a mistake. Roman's best chance of victory is to make the fight a toe to toe war and hope that he has the fitness and strength to wear down Yafai.

While not being a big puncher Yafai has a sharp punch and can throw a lot of punches. It is possible that if Roman has slipped enough, and can no longer fighter at his former pace or with his previous stamina, then Yafai could force a stoppage in the mid to late rounds.

It would be good to see Roman come back from the boxing twilight zone to regain a world title so that both he and his fans can enjoy some more great nights as they did in the past. However, the truth is that when a fighter falls apart as spectacularly as Gonzalez did in 2017, they very seldom manage to come back all the way to the top again. Unfortunately Yafai, despite not being close to the level of Roman when he was at his best, id the kind of fighter who will be awkward for a Gonzalez who has slowed down and has been inactive for the past two and a half years. Tomorrow we may see the dying light of the most outstanding fighter of the last decade. Roman, with his huge fighting pride is bound to do everything in his power to try and get the win, but my feeling is that in the end, he will come up short and perhaps go out on his shield in the later rounds.

While it does seem harsh to write off such a magnificent champion like 'Chocolatito' the fact that he has been such a great champion over the years makes it hard for one to see where he could go if he loses this match. Especially if he loses it badly. One suspects (and hopes) that Gonzalez has too much pride to allow himself to carry on if it becomes apparent that he can no longer compete successfully at the top level.

Hopefully, this is one prediction that I have got wrong and 'Chocolatito' will turn up tomorrow and prove all the doubters to be fools for writing him off so quickly.

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The Boxing Glove Big Fight Preview: Srisaket Sor Rungvisai Vs. Roman Gonzalez

By Peter Silkov

If you have been casting a jaded eye over the general media and social networking world over the past week, you may well have been left wondering whether Conor McGregor has indeed lived up to his pre-Mayweather fight threat, to ‘take over boxing’ even after his one-sided defeat at the aged hands of the ‘Money Man.’

Indeed it seems that some writers and fans just cant get enough of Mayweather vs McGregor, even after the dust has settled from their lukewarm encounter.

In the wake of this near hysteria over what in reality resembled a polite spar, if not something altogether more cynical, the biggest losers have been those boxers who are truly stepping up to the plate with real competitive fights, the kind of that the sports real fans have supposedly been demanding for so long.

A couple of weeks ago, Terence Crawford destroyed Julius Indongo to become boxing’s first undisputed world champion in over a decade, almost unnoticed.

In two weeks time, Gennady Golovkin will finally meet Canelo Alvarez in the middle of a ring, in a fight, which has been three years in the making. Yet in the wake of Mayweather vs Mcgregor, the attention given to Golovkin vs Alvarez has been polite at best. Here is a fight to decide the best 160-pounder in the world, in what promises to be the most exciting middleweight clash since Hagler vs Hearns, yet, many fans and media still seem more concerned by the next move of Conor McGregor.

If Golovkin vs Canelo has been ill treated by the boxing world at large, there is another boxing event coming up next week, which has been almost totally ignored in the recent pantomime.

In six days, on September 9, at the Stub Hub Center, Carson, California, Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez (46-1, 38koes) will seek to regain the WBC world super-flyweight championship, which was so controversially ripped from his head six months ago by Srisaket Rungvisai (43-4-1, 39koes.) It was a defeat that not only cost ‘Chocolatito’ his world title, but also his proud unbeaten record, and in many people's eyes, his status as the world's number one fighter pound-for-pound.

After all, many fans will say, how can you be the best if you have just been beaten?

Gonzalez was very unlucky not to come out of his first meeting with Rungvisai (who is also confusingly known as Wisaksil Wangek) the victor. While the fight itself was a terrific action-packed clash, with the added drama of Gonzalez bleeding from two severe cuts, most observers felt that Gonzalez scored with the better punches, and kept up a higher workrate for most of the fight. Rungvisai himself lived up to his name as a' little iron man', and put up an impressive performance of heart, and resilience.

Yet, Rungvisai also showed himself to be a rough, if not altogether dirty fighter, with both of Gonzalez’s cuts being caused by headbutts, several of which seemed to be delivered blatantly.

The fact that Rungvisai’s infringements seemed largely to escape the referee’s notice, and were never punished by any point deductions, has been one of the main topics of controversy surrounding the fight.

Had Rungvisai’s seemingly blatant butt in the 6^th round, at a point when he seemed to be in severe trouble at the fists of Gonzalez, been penalised by a point, which it surely should have been, then Gonzalez would have ended the night still world champion, despite the wayward score cards.

It is also undeniable that Gonzalez never looked to be totally relaxed against Rungvisai. He entered the ring without his usual relaxed demeanour, and this may well have been due to the recent loss of his trainer, Arnulfo Obando, who died last November after suffering a stroke. The loss of Obando undoubtedly hit Roman hard, as he had been with Arnulfo since 2010, and the trainer had been credited for helping Gonzalez develop into a brilliant fighting machine, and arguably one of the few complete boxers in the world today.

Against Rungvisai, while Gonzalez produced his usual tremendous work-rate, much of his work seemed to be forced, compared with his former performances. The expected ‘Chocolatito’ smoothness was missing almost from the start, and as the rounds went by, ‘Chocolatito’ barrelled forwards constantly, but shipped much more punishment than usual, as he seemed to forsake the usual technical nuances for that he has become well known. One of Gonzalez’s main assets, in addition to his potent punching and his formidable pace, has been his ability to box, as well as slug, and his skill at being able to slip punches while going toe to toe with an opponent.

Gonzalez has also let it be known recently that he has been increasingly frustrated by the size of his purses, in comparison to those of his heavier peers. This dissatisfaction has grown since Gonzalez has been given more exposure by HBO on the undercards of Gennady Golovkin fights, yet, that exposure has not increased his purses, compared to his heavier counterpart.

In many ways, Gonzalez is the complete antithesis of Floyd Mayweather Jr. Outside of the ring he is quiet and humble, with the kind of demeanour akin to that of his mentor Arguello, who was known as one of the gentlemen of the sport during his heyday.

Unfortunately for Gonzalez, it seems that he is operating in an era where what you do inside the ring is increasingly less relevant, to the noise that you make outside of it.

Chocolatito’s frustration is understandable after a career, which saw him win his first world title in 2008, and then go on to become Nicaragua’s first 4-weight world champion. A feat, which saw him fulfil the dream of his idol and former mentor, Alexis Arguello, whose own quest for a world title at a fourth weight came up short at the fists of Aaron Pryor.

It is possible though that Gonzalez’s achievement in winning his 4^th world title, when he captured the WBC world super-flyweight title from Carlos Cuadras a year ago this month, may proved to be a double-edged sword for ‘Chocolatito.’

Although he won, Gonzalez’s match with Cuadras turned out to be one of the toughest fights of his career, and there were even some who disagreed with the points verdict in Gonzalez’s favour. Add this to his performance against Rungvisai and the implications are clear. Gonzalez seems to no longer have that dominating edge that he enjoyed at his former weights. Part of this can be attributed to the level of his opposition, both Rungvisai and Cuadras are battle-hardened world class fighters. Cuadras especially is a huge talent, with great speed and skill, who was unbeaten in an 8 year, and 36-fight career when he met Gonzalez last September.

Add to this the fact that Gonzalez is not a ‘big’ man who is really moving up to his ‘natural’ fighting weight, like so many of today's fighters, then it is easy to see why he is finding things more difficult at the higher weight.

There is also the possibility that at the age of 30, after 9 years of world championship fighting, and 16 world championship fights, that Gonzalez is passing his peak.

With these questions hanging over him, the rematch against Rungvisai stands as the most important fight of Gonzalez’s career so far. Much has been made recently over unbeaten records and the now ludicrously mythical 50-0 mark. Yet, it should not be forgotten that many of the rings greatest-ever exponents reached their heights by overcoming defeats along the way. It could even be argued that the true measure of a fighter has not been seen until he has had to deal with the setback of defeat.

All time greats such as Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Robinson, Roberto Duran and Joe Louis, to name just a few, enjoyed some of their greatest, and most career defining moments, when coming back from defeats.

After all, it is easy to look good when you are winning, but altogether different when you have lost. Once you have lost the true mettle of a man's spirit is exposed. The great fighters have always rebounded from defeat to win again.

Perhaps this is why there are so few truly great fighters around today, in an era where that unbeaten 0 is so important.

Hence why victory is so important for ‘Chocolatito’ this Saturday. Two defeats in a row would be a huge set back for Gonzalez at this point in his career. An impressive victory should see Gonzalez restored to his rightful position as the best boxer pound- for-pound in the world. Defeat however, would see him fall down a notch, and lose out on the possible big fights that seem to be brewing at super-flyweight.

Gonzalez should be able to win this time against Rungvisai. He is undoubtedly the superior boxer technically, but he needs to rediscover some of the finer points of his boxing skills that he seemed to neglect in their first clash. Of course Gonzalez’s discomfiture was not helped by the severe cuts that he had to cope with due to Rungvisai’s headbutts. Especially the badly cut right eye, which bled heavily from the 3^rd round on.

Saturday's rematch seems destined to be another terrific barn-burner. Rungvisai is as tough as they come, but a stoppage victory for Gonzalez is not impossible, as he had Rungvisai in trouble several times in their first fight, most notably in the middle rounds and in the final stanza.

If Gonzalez can rediscover his best form, then he should secure a hard fought victory on Saturday, and revenge for his only career defeat, either by a clear point's decision or else a late stoppage. There remains though the subject of Rungvisai head, and his over zealous use of it in the heat of battle, and it is to be hoped that this time around, the referee officiating the contest is a lot sharper in punishing any dirty tactics, and that Gonzalez does not have to deal with the kind of blatant fouls that left him covered in blood in their first encounter.

Victory for Gonzalez will place his career back on track, and give him revenge for the first defeat of his boxing career, following 46 professional wins and an unbeaten amateur career of 88 contests.

If the prospect of Gonzalez vs Rungvisai isn’t enough to wet your appetite, then Saturday's undercard also contains two more exceptional matches in the super-flyweight class.

In what is his first appearance in America, Naoya Inoue (13-0, 11koes) defends his WBO world super-flyweight championship against the talented Antonio Nieves (17-1-2, 9koes.) Inoue is already a superstar in Asia, and may be on the road to becoming one of the greatest fighters to come out of Japan. He has won world titles at two weights, and competed in 8 world title fights, despite his mere 13 professional contests.

Nicknamed ‘Monster’ due to his prodigious punching power, Inoue is also a highly proficient technical boxer. It is perhaps not surprising that there has been talk of an Gonzalez vs Inoue ‘superfight’ and this would certainly be a very exciting and fascinating clash that would go a long way to bringing much more attention to boxing's lighter weights.

Yet, Inoue is still unknown to most boxing fans. You won’t find his name in many fans pound-for-pound top tens, even though his resume and skills should guarantee him a place. However, that may now be about to change now that he is arriving in America. Such recognition is important for a match with Gonzalez to be viable.

The fact that Inoue is making his American debut on this card offers a clue that such a clash with ‘Chocolatito’ may be close, should Gonzalez regain his world title.

First though, Inoue has to retain his own world title against Nieves, in what promises top be a fascinating contest. Nieves is fast, clever, and should bring the best out of the Japanese champion. Inoue will be looking to defend his title in style, and underline his claim to being the premier boxer at 115 pounds, as well as stoking up interest in a match with Roman Gonzalez.

I feel that Inoue will announce himself on American soil with an impressive, and decisive victory over Nieves, either on points or via a late stoppage.

The second important 115-pound match on the Gonzalez vs Rungvisai rematch undercard, is a possible fight of the night clash between Juan Francisco Estrada and Carlos Cuadras. Estrada is the former WBA and WBO world flyweight champion, who is now making an impact on the super-flyweight division after vacating his flyweight title and moving up. Cuadras is the former holder of the WBC world super-flyweight title, which he lost to Roman Gonzalez in September of last year, after a hotly contested encounter.

Estrada himself is also a former Roman Gonzalez opponent, having been beaten on points by Gonzalez in 2012, when he challenged Gonzalez for the WBA world light-flyweight championship, while still only 22 years old. It was a clash ,which until recently, had been remembered as one of Gonzalez’s hardest fights.

Both Estrada and Cuadras have a rematch with Gonzalez as a prime target, and the winner of their match, which is being billed as a world title eliminator by the WBC, should be in line to face the winner of Gonzalez vs Rungvisai.

This match itself is very much a ‘pick em’ encounter. Both as fast and clever box-fighters. Cuadras is more of a mover, with excellent footwork and very fast hands, which gave Gonzalez some severe trouble in their fight in 2016. Estrada is more of a puncher, although Cuadras own power is not to be discounted. Estrada can also box and has excellent technique.

Cudras has been the more active boxer recently as Estrada had a over a year out from 2015 to 2016 due to a hand injury. Yet, this could also work in Estrada’s favour as he may just be that little bit fresher.

Here is a fight that is genuinely hard to find a winner. It looks like being a very close and competitive encounter, and the winner of will be in a prime position for a shot at the WBC world super-flyweight title.

My feeling is that Estrada has a slight edge overall, with perhaps his extra strength, and single punch power proving decisive in the end. These are two very talented fighters, but Estrada has been boxing's best kept secret since his 2012 encounter with Roman Gonzalez. Saturday may well be the way when he finally comes to the notice of boxing fans outside of his native Mexico.

I’m going for an Estrada win on points after another memorable contest.

This whole bill is a very promising endeavour, showcasing as it does some of boxing’s lightest champions. It is to be hoped that these fights will grab the attention of the average boxing fan, and show them just what they have been missing. Those in the know have understood for years that the lighter weights in boxing often provide the heaviest action. It is about time that champions like Roman Gonzalez and Naoya Inoue stopped being the poor relations to their bigger and heavier counterparts, just because of their size. 

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Big Fight Report: Roman Gonzalez Dethroned In The Big Apple by Hard-Headed Srisaket Sor Rungvisai

By Peter Silkov

It's been a traumatic last few months for little warrior, Roman Gonzalez (46-1, 38koes.) After winning his 4^th world title last September, Gonzalez was deeply shaken by the death of his trainer, Arnulfo Obando, last November. Obando had been Gonzalez’s main trainer and mentor since 2010, and had guided him to 3 of his 4 world titles. His loss to Gonzalez was only too evident last night as ‘Chocolatito’s first defence of his WBC world super-flyweight title descended into a bloody nightmare for the pound-for-pound, number one, boxer in the world.

When Gonzalez won this title from Carlos Cuadras six months ago, there were indications that this might be a weight jump too far for Gonzalez. Unlike many modern fighters, Gonzalez does not lose a significant amount of weight for his fights, and in this, his 4^th weight division, he is facing opponents who are naturally bigger than him on fight night. Although he prevailed against Cuadras in September, after a fight of the year epic battle, there remained doubts about whether he was destined to be as strong a force at super-flyweight, as he was in his previous divisions.

The man chosen to provide the answer last night, at a packed Madison Square Garden, was Thai tough man, Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, (42-4-1, 38koes.) Rungvisai, a former holder of Gonzalez’s title, came with the reputation as a hard-punching tough nut, and he was to live up to this reputation in more ways than one.

The portents of what was to come were not good, as Gonzalez looked perturbed and tense, and close to tears in the moments before the contest started, constantly looking up towards the heavens, as he seemed to thinking about his late trainer, Arnulfo Obando. It was something that he was to do throughout this fight, leading one to wonder whether he was really in the right state of mind to defend his title at all.

The match started at a quick pace with both men exchanging shots and the challenger showed from the start that he was looking to stand his ground and not allow Gonzalez to push him back. In the last minute of the round the fight produced its first shock, as a body punch dumped ’Chocolatito’ onto the canvas by the ropes. The champion seemed to be more surprised than hurt, but already Rungvisai had lived up to his heavy punching reputation.

In the second round the action speeded up, as a stung Gonzalez went to work, barrelling forwards, and throwing punching with both hands. Rungvisai stayed with the champion though and would not allow himself to be put onto the back foot. Already the fight was developing into a grueling toe-to-toe battle, with neither man willing to give away an inch. Gonzalez had the faster hands, but Rungvisai the heavier punch.

The third round saw a development that was to have a significant impact upon the rest of the fight, as a clash of heads left Gonzalez with a severe cut by the side of his right eye. The cut would became worse during the course of the fight, leaving ’Chocolatito’ battling with a mask of blood covering his face. Although it was ruled by the referee, Steve Willis, that the cut was caused by an accidental butt, developments over the rest of the fight would lead an observer to conclude that it was no accident at all.

Fueled by the cut, Gonzalez intensified his attacks in the 4^th round, unleashing fierce two-fisted barrages, which started to drive the challenger back for the first time. However, just when he seemed to be on the verge of taking control of the fight, Gonzalez building rhythm was disrupted by another head butt. As would be the case in future rounds, the head butts always seemed to occur when Gonzalez was in the ascendancy.

In the 6^th round, Gonzalez seemed to be taking control of the fight through sheer will power, as he forced himself forwards and out-punched his challenger, despite a now permanent flow of blood splashing down the right side of his face. Once again his attacks were disrupted by butts. This time there were two and after the second one, not far from the end of the round, Rungvisai was finally deprived of a point by referee, Willis, yet the damage has already been done. By now, not only had the cut by Gonzalez’s eye been worsened, but he also now had a cut in his hairline.

The butts in the 6^th round certainly seemed to take some of the steam from Gonzalez’s attacks. Though he still came forwards for the remainder of the fight, Rungvisai was never in the same kind of trouble that he had seemed to be in parts of the 4^th and 6^th rounds. The size disparity was also clear as Gonzalez’s shots, so potent in the lower divisions during his career, simply bounced off Rungvisai. Yet, Gonzalez was winning rounds with the intensity of his work-rate, which was, at times, breathtaking. He also showed far better accuracy than his challenger, while also at the same time, slipping, and blocking many of the punches which were coming his way.

Despite the challenger's round tactics, and the sheer viciousness of their combat at times, this fight was fought with an admirable amount of respect on both sides, with both men touching gloves after each round. This is the way of real warriors.

Rungvisai cleaned up his act noticeably after the point deduction in the 6^th round, but in the 12^th and final round, he pulled out all his tricks as a seemingly fresher Gonzalez sought to close the show with a good finish. The challenger held, wrestled, and ran away from Gonzalez, and at several points tried blatantly to butt Gonzalez again, then even attempted to lift the champion off the floor at one point. While Gonzalez won the round, Rungvisai was lucky not to lose another point for his last round antics.

The judge's verdict, when it came, was not well received by the audience. The scores were 114-112 twice and 113-113.

This was a hard fought thriller, which should be an instant candidate for fight of the year. Fights like this are always subject to perception, and certainly there were rounds that could have gone either way. Despite everything that went against him in this match, Gonzalez still seemed to have done enough to retain his title. The Boxing Glove made Gonzalez the winner by a score of 114-112.

While he had to whether a significant amount of punishment himself, Gonzalez often outworked his rugged challenger, and more importantly blocked and slipped many of the challenger's own punches. It is possible that the judges were influenced by Gonzalez’s bloodied features into thinking that Rungvisai was doing more damage than he was in reality. The fact remains that the only wounds inflicted on Gonzalez by Rungvisai were caused by butts.

It is hard not to feel respect for Rungvisai, who showed commendable heart and will to win in this contest, but it has to be said that his tactics at times crossed the line from the rough to the dirty. His frequent head butts undoubtedly made Gonzalez’s task all the more difficult, and the single-point deduction, which he drew from them was simply not enough of a penalty. Referee Steve Willis deserves criticism for letting Rungvisai get away with far too much in what was otherwise a thrilling fight, that was aside from the fouls, fought in a great sporting spirit.

Despite the controversial nature the verdict, this defeat for Gonzalez will have been costly. He has not only lost his world title, but also his unbeaten record and status as pound-for-pound number one in the world. After his struggle against Carlos Cuadras in his previous fight at this weight, the indications are that Gonzalez is not the dominant figure at super-bantamweight that he was in the previous three divisions that he occupied. Should he decide to stay at this weight and seek a rematch against Rungvisai, or Cuadras, or perhaps former foe Juan Francisco Estrada, then he looks to have further grueling fights in his future. Even if Gonzalez had received the verdict last night, and retained his championship (as we at The Boxing Glove believe he deserved), the indications are still clear that Gonzalez is not the same fighter at super-flyweight that he was in the lower divisions. There remains the chance that he could move back down to flyweight, but at 29 and over a decade of fighting at the elite level, it is questionable whether he can still comfortably make 112 pounds.

The sad fact is that at 29, and after 8 years at the top, it looks as if Gonzalez’s time is on the wane. Gonzalez is still a wonderful fighter, who is likely to provide us with several more thrilling contests before his day is done. Yet, as with all great champions, he has reached the point of his career where the sheen of his peak has faded, seemingly overnight, and with it his aura of invincibility. The former number one fighter in the world is suddenly a mere mortal.

Full Fight:

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