Photo by Naoki Fukuda
You could argue that WBA and WBO Junior Featherweight champion Guillermo Rigondeaux is pound-for-pound the best boxer in the world today under 130 pounds.
But if you factor entertainment value into the equation, then Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez is without question the best and most watchable little fighter the sport of boxing has to offer.
The 27-year-old Nicaraguan has 42 wins without a loss, 36 of those wins have come by knockout, which includes a current streak of eight knockout wins in a row.
His fight style is as sexy as they come, an offensive juggernaut whose footwork is good enough to make the most knowledgeable boxing trainers drop their jaws.
Gonzalez is a master of using movement and balance to always keep his opponent square and hittable by sidestepping and forcing them to turn into his punches, which he always throws in hard, crisp combinations.
With his 5’3″, 112-pound frame, he cuts off the ring and stalks opponents in almost similar fashion to the man who will be fighting in the main event this Saturday night, Gennady Golovkin.
The difference is Gonzalez uses more of a technically majestic approach, while Golovkin tends to walk straight through the punches of foes in order to punish them on the inside.
Gonzalez won his first world title back in 2008 defeating Yutaka Niida for the WBA Minimumweight belt, he’s since built an impressive resume of wins, and added the WBA Light Flyweight and WBC Flyweight titles, but has managed to go completely unrecognized by boxing fans in the U.S.
His most notable win was a unanimous-decision victory over Mexico’s Juan Francisco Estrada back in November 2012, which cemented him as the man to beat in the lighter weight divisions.
Still he’s a mystery, and that’s why his fight coming up on Saturday is arguably the biggest fight of his career since he’ll be televised on HBO and watched by over a million American boxing fans.
Gonzalez will be going into the fight looking to secure a spot for the future on HBO boxing, with an exciting win he can shine a light on a Flyweight division that is routinely a hard sell to casual boxing fans.
He’ll face off against tested veteran Edgar Sosa (51-8-0, 30 KOs), who is an ex-Light flyweight title holder himself of which he made 11 defenses.
Fighting on a card with Golovkin is a perfect fit for Gonzalez, because if you like Golovkin’s style you’re sure to like Gonzalez’s, so tune in.
You might broaden your boxing spectrum by adding a Flyweight to your list of favorite fighters.
