The stage had been set for Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez heading into his WBC super flyweight title defense against Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in March 2017 as the co-main event of the Gennadiy Golovkin vs. Daniel Jacobs clash at Madison Square Garden. The Nicaraguan entered the fight as a four-division world champion with a record of 46-0 (38 KOs) and recognized by most as the number one pound-for-pound fighter in boxing. He'd been deemed as untouchable and the one who brought the lower weight classes into prominence.
Sor Rungvisai could have cared less about Gonzalez's accolades, winning a violent, bloody, and controversial majority decision. Gonzalez dusted himself and invoked the immediate rematch clause for September of the same year. However, the same result occurred, but more convincingly, as Sor Rungvisai scored a massive fourth-round knockout. Chocolatito's reign of terror appeared to be over.
Gonzalez took a year off to collect his thoughts and see if he still wanted to continue with his career. He contemplated retirement for a short amount but thankfully for boxing fans, Gonzalez shook it off and returned to notch two consecutive stoppages over Moisés Fuentes and Diomel Diocos. Those wins put Gonzalez in position to face WBA (super) super flyweight titlist Kal Yafai on the Mikey Garcia-Jessie Vargas undercard in February. "Chocolatitio" showed he was back, using his customary high work rate, relentless pressure, and a vicious body attack to drop Yafai twice and win by ninth-round TKO.
Gonzalez (49-2, 41 KOs) looks to continue his resurgence and prove the Yafai bout wasn't a fluke. He defends his title against Israel Gonzalez on Friday at Azteca Studios in Mexico City, live on DAZN in available DAZN markets.
"I felt that I had accomplished one more dream in my life," Gonzalez told Bad Left Hook through a translator about the Yafai fight. "I didn't have anything to prove to anyone just to myself and my team. I am thankful with God that gave me the opportunity to fight such a great champion that I admire, and it was an honor to share the ring with him. The rest of the people will always have their opinions, and I respect them, but I'm not concerned about them."
A win puts Gonzalez right back in the catbird seat to reclaim his throne at the top of the 115-pound division. If WBC titleholder Juan Francisco Estrada gets by his rematch with Carlos Cuadras on the same show, he and Gonzalez would meet again in the early part of 2021. Gonzalez won the first bout in November 2012 via unanimous decision in an all-action affair.
"I think he is a great champion, and our fight will be very explosive," Gonzalez said about Estrada. "We have both learned a lot and have become more mature in and out of the ring, so I expect it will be an excellent performance from both of us."
Wins over Gonzalez and Estrada would put "Chocolatito" right back into the pound-for-pound conversation. Remember, Gonzalez had lost his longtime trainer, Arnulfo Obando, who died from a stroke in November 2016 at the age of 54. He was the man responsible for molding Gonzalez into the unstoppable force who took the boxing world by storm.
Losing someone you view as a father figure can take a toll on anyone. People have this notion that athletes are invincible, don't have feelings, and can block anything out when the bell sounds. Life doesn't work like that. Athletes have real feelings and emotions like everyday people. Not having Obando was devastating for Gonzalez, and it showed in the Sor Rungvisai.
Taking the year off was the best thing Gonzalez could have done. The time away let him grieve and pursue a new trainer who could get him back to where he was just a short time ago. He found solace in Marcos Caballero, the father of former bantamweight world titlist Randy Caballero.
"There were some very sad moments," Gonzalez said to ESPN before the Yafai fight about the loss of Obando. "But that is what life teaches you. That is what God teaches you. You don't have to have your head down. You always have to raise your head and look to the future. Right now, I have Marcos Caballero with me, and he has most of the qualities that Arnulfo had."
Having Caballero by his side has rejuvenated Gonzalez, and is now on the doorstep of reclaiming the throne he once sat on.