Srisaket Sor Rungvisai retained the WBC Super Flyweight title with a 4th round knockout over Roman Gonzalez at The StubHub Center in Carson, California.

Rungvisai consistently beat Gonzalez to the punch when the two stood toe-to-toe in the center of the ring.  Gonzalez looked a bit slower then in recent fights, where he was considered pound for pound the best fighter in the world.

In round four, Rungvisai landed a right hook that sent Gonzalez to the deck.  Gonzalez seemed to steady himself only to eat another right hook that sent him plummeting to  the canvas, and the fight was immediately stopped at 1:18.

Runvisai, 115 lbs of Si Sa Ket, THA is now 44-4-1 with 40 knockouts.  Gonzalez, 114.8 lbs of Managua, NIC is

Nayoya Inoue made an impressive American debut by stopping Antonio Nieves after round six to retain the WBO Super Flyweight title.46-2-1.

Inoue was dominant, and in round five, he landed a vicious left hook to the body that sent Nieves to the canvas.  Inoue continued to pound Nieves, and after round six, Nieves’ corner mercifully stopped the bout.

Inoue, 115 lbs of Yokohama, JAP is now 14-0 with 12 knockouts.  Nives, 113.8 lbs of Cleveland, OH is 17-2-2.

Juan Francisco Estrada won a 12-round unanimous decision over Carlos Cuadras in a battle of former world champions.

Cuadras came out boxing and controlled the early rounds.  the fight started to turn in round six, as he started to land hard power shots that rocked Cuadras.

In round two, Estrada landed a perfect straight right that sent Cuadras to the canvas.  Estrada came on late to take the late rounds and come from behind to win on all cards by 114-113 scores.

Estrada, 114.8 lbs of Puerto Penasco, Mexico is now 36-2.  Cuadras, 114.6 lbs of Mexico City is 36-2-1.

Follow all the action as Srisaket Sor Rungvisai defends the WBC Super Flyweight title in a highly anticipated rematch with 4-division champion Roman Gonzalez.  The action kicks off at 10:15 ET / 7:15 PT / 9:15 am Sunday in Thailand and 8:15 PM in Managua with a two fight undercard as Naoua Inoue defends the WBO Super Flyweight title against Antonio Nieves and Carlos Cuadras takes on Juan Francisco Estrada in an All-Mexican Super Flyweight showdown.

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Round 1: Accidental headbutt/no cuts…Straight left from Rungvisai

Round 2 Gonzalez being aggressive…combinatons..Good right…

Round 3  Tremendous toe to toe action..Hard right from Gonzalez…hard left from Rungvisai..

Round 4 Body work from Rungvisai…HARD RIGHT HOOK AND DOWN GOES GONZALEZ…HARD RIGHT AND DOWN GOES GONZALEZ AGAIN…HE IS KNOCKED OUT

Round 1: Jab-right hand from Inoue…1-2…Hard 3 punch combination..Hard left from Nieves..Body shot from Inoue..

Round 2 Right from Nieves to the body..right…Jab from Inoue..2 body shots..Body shots from Nieves..Body shot from Inoue..Right..left to body..combination

Round 3 Uppercut from Inoue..Body shots..3 punch combination

Round 4  Inoue lands a left to the body..another one..

Round 5:  LEFT TO THE BODY AND DOWN GOES NIEVES..Hard left hooks

Round 6:  good right from Inoue..Left hooks to the body..Right and left to the head..Vicious right...FIGHT STOPPED AFTER THE ROUND

Round 1: Body work from Cuadras

Round 2 Combination from Cuadras…Counter right from Estrada

Round 3 Left hook from Cuadras…Jab..Combination..1-2…Left hook from Estrada..Left hook

Round 4 2 left hook from Cuadras…

Round 5 Hard uppercut from Estrada..Counter right from Cuadras…Left hook..Good left hook from Estrada..Right..Body shots and left hook from Cuadras..

Round 6 Hard jab from Estrada..Hard 1-2..Right..left hook..Big right from Cuadras..Big right from Estrada..

Round 7 Hard right from Estrada..Hard flush right..Uppercut from Cuadras..Good right

Round 8 Straight right and jab..left hook to body from Estrada..Right from Cuadras..Good body shots…Good right from Estrada..

Round 9 Uppercut from Cudras..Good right…combination and right hand…

Round 10 Hard right from Estrada..HARD RIGHT AND DOWN GOES CUADRAS..2 Hard right hands…Right…Cuadras lands a lopping right

Round 11 Good left hook from Estrada..Body shot from Cuadras..Good left from Estrada..Left hook from Cuadras..Left hook inside for Estrada..Big left hook..

Round 12: Good right from Estrada..Big left hook..Combination from Cuadras…Hard right over the ropes from Estrada..Left hook from Cuadras…

114-113 on ALL CARDS FOR  JUAN FRANCISCO ESTRADA

 

HBO BOXING AFTER DARK presents a must-see tripleheader featuring the four top-ranked super flyweights in the world when HBO BOXING AFTER DARK: SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI VS. ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ AND NAOYA INOUE VS. ANTONIO NIEVES AND CARLOS CUADRAS VS. JUAN FRANCISCO ESTRADA is seen SATURDAY, SEPT. 9 at 10:15 p.m. (ET/PT) from StubHub Center in Carson, Cal. The HBO Sports team will call all the action, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.

The fights will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO, HBO On Demand and affiliate portals.

The main event features the sport’s most anticipated rematch when Thailand’s Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (43-4-1, 39 KOs) defends his super flyweight title against Nicaragua’s Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez (46-1, 38 KOs) in a scheduled 12-round bout. The two 30-year-old ring warriors are set to wage war again just six months after their thrilling back-and-forth fight at Madison Square Garden, which resulted in the title changing hands and Gonzalez losing his undefeated record via a controversial majority decision. Sor Rungvisai used his unconventional southpaw style to capture his first world title and now hopes to defend it successfully in just his second U.S. fight, while former four-division champion Gonzalez seeks to avenge his first pro defeat in his sixth HBO appearance.

In the co-main event, Naoya Inoue (13-0, 11 KOs) of Yokohama, Japan, defends his share of the super flyweight title against Cleveland’s Antonio Nieves (17-1-2, 9 KOs) in scheduled 12-round bout. Inoue, 24, makes his U.S. debut following a fast start to his pro career, having captured a world title in just his sixth professional fight and successfully defended his super flyweight title five times. Nieves, 30, is making his first bid for a world title and looks to disrupt Inoue’s campaign in the 115-pound division.

In the opening bout, former world champions from Mexico square off when Carlos Cuadras (36-1-1, 27 KOs) of Mexico City takes on Juan Francisco Estrada (35-2, 25 KOs) of Sonora in a scheduled 12-round super flyweight contest. Cuadras, 28, and Estrada, 27, have both lost to Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez, and are seeking a shot at a piece of the super flyweight title.

Immediately following the live boxing action, HBO Sports presents the second episode of 24/7 Canelo-Golovkin, which previews the September 16 pay-per-view mega fight matchup. (Click here to Watch Episode 1)

Follow HBO boxing news at hbo.com/boxing, on Facebook at facebook.com/hboboxing and on Twitter at twitter.com/hboboxing.

All HBO boxing events are presented in HDTV. HBO viewers must have access to the HBO HDTV channel to watch HBO programming in high definition.

The executive producer of HBO BOXING AFTER DARK is Rick Bernstein; producer, Thomas Odelfelt; director, Johnathan Evans.

® HBO BOXING AFTER DARK is a registered service mark of Home Box Office, Inc.

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By Bart Barry-

Nicaraguan super flyweight Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez seeks to avenge his career’s first loss against Thailand’s Wisaksil “Srisaket Sor Rungvisai” Wangek in the main event of this Saturday’s extraordinary “Superfly” card in Carson, Calif., a card HBO will broadcast and in so doing stake an unlikely and indisputable claim to 2017’s best boxing broadcast. The comain will have Japan’s Naoya “The Monster” Inoue making his first match in the U.S. And the co-comain will have yet another 115-pound man, Mexican Carlos “Principe” Cuadras, whose claim as the world’s best super flyweight is not an unreasonable one, making combat with countryman Juan Francisco Estrada.

Frankly it’s an honor to cover a card of this quality. A quick query to the memory brings back a nullset of a better constructed threematch finale to a card I’ve attended – though Barrera-Juarez II in 2006 comes tumbling forward on the virtue of what Israel Vazquez did to Jhonny Gonzalez in the co-comain (while Marco Antonio Barrera bemused Rocky Juarez too thoroughly in the main to make the card actually historic, despite its fine construction).

Most importantly it could be the last chance to see a historic prizefighter like Chocolatito in the mainevent of a consequential card. Whatever happens Saturday Chocolatito is unlikely to retire and stay retired, a more likely occurrence is that long past the viable economics of the act Chocolatito’ll continue to work for backwages in a futile bid to do things the Money way, and he’s too good and decent for that to be a thing worth traveling to Los Angeles or Managua to witness.

The march upwards in weightclass and age is too much for any man to endure flawlessly much past his 40th fight or 30th year if he weighs less than 120 pounds, and in March Sor Rungvisai played reminder of this much as its cause. Chocolatito did more to accomplish less against Sor Rungvisai than any Sor Rungvisai predecessor and being reminded of it exhausted Gonzalez till the ratio trebled but still Chocolatito spun and whacked and resisted what disbelief surely came thumping. If there were special preparations Sor Rungvisai made for Chocolatito he did not betray them; perhaps his fruitfullest tactic was treating a legend like a shortnotice swingbout replacement to be butted and beaten as whim bade.

Whatever the weighting supposedly be, a good metric for ring generalship, that squirrely criterion with which we justify our biases when scoring rounds that’re close, is: Who files first appeal to the referee? who petitions an official’s intervention in lieu of making justice with his proper fists?

In March it was Chocolatito and an unfailingly bad sign. If Sor Rungvisai’s heady comportment was less than purely sporting Chocolatito’s conduct was more worrisome. Great fighters are dirty fighters and Chocolatito is a great fighter by this measure and every other but in March Chocolatito was a statesman, and offended too. He knew what Sor Rungvisai did was not accidental but once referee Steve Willis refused to be more officious than a point’s deduction from the Thai’s tally Chocolatito needed to remedy fouls with fouls, as craft told him he should, but Chocolatito did not and did something oh so much worse: He let selfindulgence touch him a touch.

Such indulgence begets brutalization and it surely did in March. Chocolatito’s face and head was an ugly mess by the concluding bell. What stung worse than his first career loss coming at the hands and head of an unclassed brute like Sor Rungvisai was Chocolatito’s realizing he’d have to face the man again and immediately if he chose not to retire – something like what the late Vernon Forrest felt the day after losing to Ricardo Mayorga. If Sor Rungvisai did not inflict the same mental cruelty on Chocolatito as Mayorga did Forrest he distributed a commensurate physical cruelty that would render a lesser man cautious in rematch.

Fortunately for Chocolatito there is only one strategy in the ring and a startling array of tactics for employing it – endeavor to attrition any man toeing the line before you. He expected Sor Rungvisai to fold of his own discouragement and got surprised when Sor Rungvisai did not. Class did not tell ultimately in March because it got thwarted by Sor Rungvisai’s fouling and obliviousness of his opponent’s class, which may be a roundabout way of writing class, of a certain sort, did indeed tell.

Expect Chocolatito to be the offender Saturday; if Sor Rungvisai did not pack a cup packed with reinforced beltline padding for his trip from Thailand he will regret it; Chocolatito will be targeting that beltline and a few inches above and below it from the opening bell until he is told to stop and after he is told to stop until a point gets deducted and maybe after that, too. Accustomed to enjoying benefits of all scoring doubts in his career’s 27 or so championship matches Chocolatito did not expect to lose March’s decision and now says in a convincing tone he intends to strip Sor Rungvisai of his fitness to continue, and if so, what difference will a point deduction in round 3 and another in round 8 matter?

There’s a genuine possibility, though, Chocolatito’s belting Sor Rungvisai early and often will not avenge his first loss. Sor Rungvisai well may have Chocolatito’s number; he well may have too much physicality and chin and derringdo for this 30-year-old, 115-pound iteration of Nicaragua’s second alltime great, remanding Gonzalez to retirement but leaving HBO with enough pieces – in Sor Rungvisai and Cuadras and Inoue, at least – to make an historic unification of the super flyweight division.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

LOS ANGELES, CA (September 2, 2017) WBC Super Flyweight World Champion SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI, (42-4-1, 38 KO’s), of Si Sa Ket, Thailand and former WBC Super Flyweight Champion ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ, (46-1-0, 38 KO’s), both weighed in within the required WBC 7-day weight limit ahead of their highly anticipated rematch set for Saturday, September 9 from the legendary StubHub Center in Carson, California and televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark beginning at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT.

From his training camp in Thailand, Rungvisai weighed in at 119lbs. while Gonzalez tipped the scales in Japan at 119.8lbs. Both fighters were required to weigh-in at 121lbs. or under per the World Boxing Council.

Opening the telecast, former WBC Super Flyweight World Champion CARLOS “PRINCIPE” CUADRAS, (36-1-1, 27 KO’s)) of Mexico City will battle fellow rival countrymen and former flyweight world champion JUAN FRANCISCO “EL GALLO” ESTRADA, (35-2-0, 25 KO’s) of Sonora, Mexico in a 12-round WBC Super Flyweight Title Eliminator.

Both warriors were also within the WBC 7-day weight limit from their respective training camps in Mexico with Cuadras tipping the scales at 119.9lbs. and Estrada at 121lbs.

Co-featured on the outstanding “SUPERFLY” card is the United States debut of NAOYA “THE MONSTER” INOUE, (13-0-0, 11 KO’s) of Yokohama, Japan defending his WBO Super Flyweight Title against top contender ANTONIO “CARITA” NIEVES, (17-1-2, 9 KO’s) of Cleveland, Ohio.

Remaining tickets for “SUPERFLY” are now on sale priced at $250 and $150, both of which have very limited availability, in addition to $100 and $60. The $30 price range is sold out. All ticket prices are plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges. Tickets can be purchased at AXS.com, by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849), and at StubHub Center Box Office (Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. PT to 6 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available by calling 877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, call 877-234-8425. Doors will open on the night of the event at 3:30 p.m. PT with the first bell at 4:00 p.m. PT.

The StubHub Center is located at 18400 Avalon Blvd., Carson CA, 90746 on the campus of California State University – Dominguez Hills. For directions and further information please visit their website at www.StubHubCenter.com

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LOS ANGELES, CA (August 8, 2017) WBC Super Flyweight World Champion SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI, (42-4-1, 38 KO’s), of Si Sa Ket, Thailand and former WBC Super Flyweight Champion ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ, (46-1-0, 38 KO’s), both weighed in within the required WBC 30-day weigh limit ahead of their highly anticipated rematch set for Saturday, September 9 from the legendary StubHub Center in Carson, California and televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark beginning at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT.

From his training camp in Thailand, Rungvisai weighed in at 123lbs. while Gonzalez tipped the scales in Japan at 122lbs. Both fighters were required to weigh-in at 127lbs or under per the World Boxing Council.

The Rungvisai/Gonzalez rematch of their epic clash this past March headlines the historic “SUPERFLY” card, one of the most anticipated shows of the year featuring six of the top super flyweights in the world.

Co-featured on the outstanding “SUPERFLY” card is the United States debut of NAOYA “THE MONSTER” INOUE, (13-0-0, 11 KO’s) of Yokohama, Japan defending his WBO Super Flyweight Title against top contender ANTONIO “CARITA” NIEVES, (17-1-2, 9 KO’s) of Cleveland, Ohio.

Opening the telecast, former WBC Super Flyweight World Champion CARLOS “PRINCIPE” CUADRAS, (36-1-1, 27 KO’s) of Mexico City will battle fellow rival countrymen and former flyweight world champion JUAN FRANCISCO “EL GALLO” ESTRADA, (35-2-0, 25 KO’s) of Sonora, Mexico in a 12-round WBC Super Flyweight Title Eliminator.

Also featured on the off-TV undercard is four-time champion in two weight divisions, “THE HAWAIIAN PUNCH”, BRIAN VILORIA (37-5-0, 22 KO’s) who will compete in an eight round super flyweight battle against an opponent to be announced shortly.

Remaining tickets for “SUPERFLY” are now on sale priced at $250 and $150, both of which have very limited availability, in addition to $100 and $60. The $30 price range is sold out. All ticket prices are plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges. Tickets can be purchased at AXS.com, by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849), and at StubHub Center Box Office (Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. PT to 6 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available by calling 877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, call 877-234-8425. Doors will open on the night of the event at 3:30 p.m. PT with the first bell at 4:00 p.m. PT.

The StubHub Center is located at 18400 Avalon Blvd., Carson CA, 90746 on the campus of California State University – Dominguez Hills. For directions and further information please visit their website at www.StubHubCenter.com

Photo Credit/K2 Promotions

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LOS ANGELES, CA (July 6, 2017) Southern California’s iconic outdoor boxing venue, The StubHub Center in Carson, California, home to numerous legendary nights of action over the last decade, will play host to the highly anticipated “SUPERFLY” triple header set for Saturday, September 9, it was announced today by TOM LOEFFLER, Managing Director of K2 PROMOTIONS.

Tickets for “SUPERFLY” will go on sale Tomorrow, Friday, July 7 at 12:00 p.m. PT and are priced at $250, $150, $100, $60 and $30, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges. Tickets can be purchased at AXS.com, by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849), and at StubHub Center Box Office (Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. PT to 6 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available by calling 877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, call 877-234-8425. Doors will open on the night of the event at 3:30 p.m. PT with the first bell at 4:00 p.m. PT.

“Since we announced this extraordinary triple header a couple weeks ago, the fans have demanded it take place at their favorite venue for action, and we are excited to confirm the show will take place at the StubHub Center” said Loeffler. “We look forward to another magical night on September 9 for what many fans and media feel is the best card of 2017.”

“This event will be a little less than four years since we promoted the Gennady Golovkin vs. Marco Antonio Rubio fight at The Stubhub Center, one of the most remarkable evenings in recent years that broke the boxing attendance record and we look forward to another memorable event on September 9.”

“I have to give a great deal of credit to the six promoters I worked with to put this event together; Teiken Promotions, Nakornloung Promotion, Ohashi Promotions, Salita Promotions, Promociones del Pueblo and Zanfer Promotions. The cooperative spirit of all parties was the key in putting together this outstanding, world-class international card.”

“Additionally I’d like to thank the team at the StubHub Center and Dan Beckerman of AEG for their help in presenting this event.”

Televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark beginning at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT, “SUPERFLY” is headlined by the WBC Super Flyweight World Champion SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI, (43-4-1, 39 KO’s), of Si Sa Ket, Thailand, defending his title against former champion “ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ (46-1-0, 38 KO’s), of Managua, Nicaragua, in a rematch of their epic battle this past March.

On March 18, 2017, ‘Chocolatito’, universally recognized at the time as The #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter in the World and holder of the WBC Super Flyweight Title, battled Srisaket Sor Rungivisai in front of a massive crowd at ‘The Mecca of Boxing’, Madison Square Garden.

Despite being dropped in the first round, the valiant ‘Chocolatito’ battled back in a brutal war that included a tremendous amount of hard-hitting from both combatants along with a number of head butts due to the aggressive styles of the orthodox champion and southpaw challenger.

Sor Rungvisai was declared the winner by controversial majority decision, 114-112, 114-112 and 113-113 in a fight that many believe to be the leading candidate for this year’s “Fight of the Year.”

The World Boxing Council (WBC) ordered an immediate rematch so there would be no question who their champion would be.

Co-featured on the outstanding “SUPERFLY” card is the highly anticipated United States debut of NAOYA “THE MONSTER” INOUE, (13-0-0, 11 KO’s) of Yokohama, Japan defending his WBO Super Flyweight Title against top contender ANTONIO “CARITA” NIEVES, (17-1-2, 9 KO’s) of Cleveland, Ohio.

The 24-year-old Inoue is among the most popular fighters in Asia, having already made five defenses of his WBO Super Flyweight Title he earned following his second round knockout of Omar Narvaez on December 30, 2014 in Tokyo, Japan.

Earning his nickname, “The Monster” from his heavy handed knockouts, Inoue is seeking to grow his fan base from the huge Asian community of U.S. based boxing fans.

Inoue kicked off his 2017 campaign with a third round stoppage of Ricardo Rodriguez on May 21 in Tokyo, Japan.

Fighting out of Cleveland, Ohio, Nieves will be looking to join the long history of world champions of Puerto Rican heritage. Undefeated through the first six years of his professional career, Nieves suffered his first loss very controversially, losing a 10-round split decision to Nikolai Potapov on March 10 in Detroit, Michigan.

Opening the telecast, former WBC Super Flyweight World Champion CARLOS “PRINCIPE” CUADRAS, (36-1-1, 27 KO’s)) of Mexico City will battle fellow rival countrymen and former flyweight world champion JUAN FRANCISCO “EL GALLO” ESTRADA, (35-2-0, 25 KO’s) of Sonora, Mexico in a 12-round WBC Super Flyweight Title Eliminator.

In a 2016 ‘Fight of the Year’ contender, former WBC Super Flyweight Champion Cuadras would lose for the first time in his eight-year career on September 10, 2016 by unanimous decision to Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez. Fighting furiously over the course of the twelve epic rounds in front of a huge crowd at The Fabulous Forum, Cuadras would come up just short on the scorecards losing by unanimous decision.

Most recently, Cuadras won a hard fought 10-round unanimous decision over fellow Mexican David Carmona on March 18, 2017 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

A former unified flyweight world champion, Estrada is best known for his action packed 12-round battle with Roman Gonzalez on November 17, 2012 in Los Angeles, losing a very close decision. Estrada also holds wins over former world champions Brian Viloria, Giovani Segura and Hernan Marquez.

The StubHub Center is located at 18400 Avalon Blvd., Carson CA, 90746 on the campus of California State University – Dominguez Hills. For directions and further information please visit their website at www.StubHubCenter.com

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LOS ANGELES, CA (June 17, 2017) The Super Flyweight Division, long one of boxing’s most exciting, filled with many of the sports’ legendary superstars, will add another chapter into its annals of memorable evenings on Saturday, September 9.

WBC Super Flyweight World Champion SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI, (43-4-1, 39 KO’s), of Si Sa Ket, Thailand, defends his title against former champion “ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ (46-1-0, 38 KO’s), of Managua, Nicaragua, in a rematch of their epic battle this past March. The rematch headlines a tripleheader that will be televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark beginning at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT.

Co-featured on the outstanding “SUPERFLY” card is the highly anticipated United States debut of NAOYA “THE MONSTER” INOUE, (13-0-0, 11 KO’s) of Yokohama, Japan defending his WBO Super Flyweight Title against top contender ANTONIO “CARITA” NIEVES, (17-1-2, 9 KO’s) of Cleveland, Ohio.

Opening the telecast, former WBC Super Flyweight World Champion CARLOS “PRINCIPE” CUADRAS, (36-1-1, 27 KO’s)) of Mexico City will battle fellow rival countrymen and former flyweight world champion JUAN FRANCISCO “EL GALLO” ESTRADA, (35-2-0, 25 KO’s) of Sonora, Mexico.

The venue location and ticket information will be announced shortly.

“We’re very excited to present this fantastic triple header featuring the top five super flyweights in the world,” said TOM LOEFFLER of K2 PROMOTIONS. “With the great history of memorable bouts in the super flyweight combined with the extraordinary talents of these six fighters in these two world championship fights along with the world title eliminator, the fans will truly be the winners of this event.”

“Boxing fans will have the rare opportunity to see if the new champion, Sor Rungvisai can repeat his performance with another victory or if ‘Chocolatito’ will prove that he still belongs at the top of the pound-for-pound list by avenging a controversial loss.”

“We have had great interest from numerous venues wishing to host this event, we are currently working through the locations and will have a site and ticket announcement shortly.”

“Thanks very much to Peter Nelson of HBO for his continued foresight and interest in the lighter weight divisions which has influenced this tremendous event with the top five fighters in the super flyweight division being showcased.”

“This all-action super flyweight tripleheader will have fight fans eagerly awaiting September 9th,” says Peter Nelson, Executive Vice President, HBO Sports. “We applaud all six fighters for their willingness to lace up their gloves to face the very best.”

“I would like to thank WBC, HBO, and K2 promotion for this opportunity,” said Srisaket Sor Rungvisai. “I’m honored to share the ring again and defend the WBC Super Flyweight Title against Roman Gonzalez. He is a legend and the best fighter I have faced.”

“I’m training hard to be the winner of this rematch. Boxing fans around the world will get to see another great fight between us, and I will win and take the WBC World Championship title back for everyone in Thailand.”

“I’m ready to go back into battle and reclaim by WBC Super Flyweight Championship from Sor Rungvisai on September 9,” said ‘Chocolatito’. “I know what I have to do to become victorious and with God’s help I will be champion once again.”

“As always thanks very much to Mr. Honda, K2 Promotions and HBO for this opportunity.”

On March 18, 2017, ‘Chocolatito’, universally recognized as The #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter in the World and holder of the WBC Super Flyweight Title, battled Srisaket Sor Rungivisai in front of a massive crowd at ‘The Mecca of Boxing’, Madison Square Garden.

Despite being dropped in the first round, the valiant ‘Chocolatito’ battled back in a brutal war that included a tremendous amount of hard-hitting from both combatants along with a number of head butts due to the aggressive styles of the orthodox champion and southpaw challenger.

Sor Rungvisai was declared the winner by controversial majority decision, 114-112, 114-112 and 113-113 in a fight that many believe to be the leading candidate for this year’s “Fight of the Year.”

The World Boxing Council (WBC) ordered an immediate rematch so there would be no question who their champion would be.

Stated Naoya Inoue about his title defense and first bout in the United States, “It’s been my dream to fight in the United States and I’m very excited to be defending my title against Antonio Nieves on September 9. I look forward to putting on a great performance for the fans.”

“I’m very excited to face Naoya Inoue for the WBO Super Flyweight Title on September 9,” said Antonio Nieves. “This is my first world title opportunity and I’m very grateful to HBO, Tom Loeffler and Tim VanNewhouse for making this possible.”

The 24-year-old Inoue is among the most popular fighters in Asia, having already made five defenses of his WBO Super Flyweight Title he was awarded following his second round knockout of Omar Narvaez on December 30, 2014 in Tokyo, Japan.

Earning his nickname, “The Monster” from his heavy handed knockouts, Inoue is seeking to grow his fan base from the huge Asian community of U.S. based boxing fans.

Inoue kicked off his 2017 campaign with a third round stoppage of Ricardo Rodriguez on May 21 in Tokyo, Japan.

Fighting out of Cleveland, Ohio, Nieves will be looking to join the long history of world champions of Puerto Rican heritage. Undefeated through the first six years of his professional career, Nieves suffered his first loss very controversially, losing a 10-round split decision to Nikolai Potapov on March 10 in Detroit, Michigan.

Stated Carlos Cuadras, “I can’t wait to get back in the ring on September 9 against Juan Estrada. He’s a very tough fighter but I will be victorious and put on a show for the fans, then I want a fight with whoever is the champion ‘Chocolatito’ or Sor Rungvisai to get my belt back.”

“Carlos Cuadras is a great Champion and we will have a great fight but he is just the first step towards me becoming the best super flyweight in the world! See you September 9,” said Juan Francisco Estrada.

In a 2016 ‘Fight of the Year’ contender, former WBC Super Flyweight Champion Cuadras would lose for the first time in his eight-year career on September 10, 2016 by unanimous decision to Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez. Fighting furiously over the course of the twelve epic rounds in front of a huge crowd at The Fabulous Forum, Cuadras would come up just short on the scorecards losing by unanimous decision.

Most recently, Cuadras won a hard fought 10-round unanimous decision over fellow Mexican David Carmona on March 18, 2017 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

A former unified flyweight world champion, Estrada is best known for his action packed 12-round battle with Roman Gonzalez on November 17, 2012 in Los Angeles, losing a very close decision. Estrada also holds wins over former world champions Brian Viloria, Giovani Segura and Hernan Marquez.

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According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, former four-division world champion Roman Gonzalez could be back in September.

Gonzalez, the only fighter from Nicaragua to win world titles in four weight classes, lost his junior bantamweight belt — and his status as the widely recognized pound-for-pound No. 1 fighter in the world — to Thailand’s Srisaket Sor Rungvisai on March 18 on the Gennady Golovkin-Daniel Jacobs undercard at Madison Square Garden in New York.

“The WBC ordered the rematch, and that’s the fight we’re looking at doing. HBO wants to air that fight. The rematch is the plan but we haven’t finalized an agreement yet, but that’s the plan as of now,” Loeffler said. “We saw the first fight was and it was a tremendous fight.

“Srisaket rose to the occasion and performed under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden and took advantage of the opportunity, but most people thought Roman won that fight and that’s why the WBC ordered a rematch. So it will be a fight to see if Roman is still a top pound-for-pound fighter or if Srisaket is really the top fighter in that division.”

The WBC received a request from Teiken Promotions and K2 Promotions to order a direct rematch between their fighter, Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez, and Srisaket Sor Rungvisai after their sensational fight on March 18, which was won by majority decision by Sor Rungvisai from Thailand.

The WBC Board of Governors considers that due to the extraordinary fight, which was extremely close, and considering that the WBC championship rules regarding accidental head butts were not used, but most importantly, considering the public demand to witness once again a great match between these two great fighters, the WBC has granted the request by unanimous vote to order the rematch between Sor Rungvisai and Gonzalez.

The WBC convention ruling had ordered the winner of march 18 to fight Carlos Cuadras, and considering that the rematch will not take place in some time due to the medical suspension of both fighters, the WBC is ordering an interim championship between the two highest available contenders, Cuadras and Juan Francisco Estrada.

The winners of both fights – Srisaket vs. Gonzalez and Cuadras vs. Estrada – must fight each other next.

The WBC is very pleased with this ruling that will provide a series of great fights in the super flyweight division, which is very important for boxing and for the boxers.

By Jimmy Tobin-

Saturday night at Madison Square Garden, Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez lost a majority decision to an unheralded if not entirely overlooked Thai fighter named Wisaksil “Srisaket Sor Rungvisai” Wangek in a fight that was not expected to confirm Gonzalez’ greatness yet did just that, judges’ appraisal of his performance be damned.

For those who have never been particularly enamoured with Gonzalez, those who find little intimidating about a prizefighter who barely meets the height requirements of a rollercoaster, or who are predisposed to antipathy whenever a collective enthusiasm swells too quickly and coincidently, too utterly, Gonzalez’ loss to a fighter likely to be remembered not by his name but by some strung together series of attributes like “That-Thai-Guy-Who-Beat-Chocolatito” must be satisfying. More so even, considering “The-Bum-That-Exposed-Roman” is Gonzalez’ fighting inferior in every way, owing any advantage he held Saturday night exclusively to size—which is to say, to little he could take much credit for. Nor does decrying the decision mitigate the defeat. Gonzalez was dropped in the first round and abused regularly, such that establishing his dominance in a manner that was convincing not simply in its craft but in the response that craft produced required every one of the 33 remaining minutes he had.

Gonzalez falling just short should not come as a complete surprise both because of the diminished returns Gonzalez has found as a super flyweight and because he has been pursuing defeat his entire career. In hindsight, it is easy to trace a fighter’s path to defeat, to see the harbingers of the inevitable often overlooked in victory. This applies to Gonzalez as well, who is still a near-perfect weapon but one now short on firepower (ever a problem for an undersized pressure fighter). Yet Gonzalez is special in the way that he willingly, consistently put himself in a position to encourage this induction.

There is a telling moment in HBO’s “2 Days: Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez” where, speaking of fighters who have fallen short of their dreams, Gonzalez says: “They don’t realize that the more you win, the tougher the fights.” What is first striking about this statement is how naive it sounds. Gonzalez envisions a sport where fighters are not regularly rewarded for victories with easier fights, where their reputations are not frequently established off little more than a noteworthy win or two and preserved via machinations meant to secure a narrative rather than sound out the truth. And what of his speaking of tougher fights when so many of his fraternity would have employed the word “bigger”? It implies that Gonzalez still trusts in the role of meritocracy in his sport. Charming that; rare too, and indicative perhaps of what influence a country’s fighting idol can have on its gloved hopefuls. America, then, should not expect to produce the next Gonzalez.

His words also reveal the psychology of a fighter who pursues defeat; that it took Gonzalez twelve years to find it had nothing to do with risk aversion, his unbeaten streak is not the product of culling a feeble herd. A singular talent, that people still assert otherwise of Gonzalez when so many fighters make their reputations off the eye-test is baffling. In his march through four divisions, Gonzalez has cut down plenty of deserving adversaries while treating any Dierry Jeans, Dominic Wades, Blake Camparellos, and Alexander Brands he met along the way as a fighter of his stock should.

But you need know none of that—you need only watch him to understand what a unique fighter Gonzalez is.

And has he ever been greater than he was in the twelfth round Saturday night? When, with cuts from headbutts accidental and otherwise left his right eye streaming blood, taxed from twelve rounds with an opponent he could crack but not shatter, an opponent whose physical presence alone made demands of him that smaller better fighters could not, Gonzalez stepped to center ring and left no doubt about what kind of fighter he is?

While Wangek punched and pushed, pushed and held, Gonzalez set about his work: weaving into and chopping away at an opponent who more and more seemed eager to simply survive, to take whatever punishment he need to find sanctuary in a clinch. Using angles that not only allowed him to find softer targets for his punches but left his opponent one-handed, how masterfully did Gonzalez make his final bid for victory. There would be no dramatic stoppage, that much was clear, yet Gonzalez continued his assault, forcing the bigger, stronger, harder punching man into a fight he wanted little to do with until, finally spent, Gonzalez had to simply catch Wangek’s closing flurry on his gloves and offer one last jab as the bell sounded.

Against this latest daunting opponent, that effort was not enough. And that is as it should be, considering Gonzalez has spent so much of his career tempting just such a night. It is entirely possible that a series of losses come in the wake of his first if only because it is hard to imagine Gonzalez taking anything but a difficult fight. But his losses will never define him: they will be expected, forgiven, perhaps even celebrated.

What does it mean to pursue defeat? In short, to pursue greatness. Gonzalez finally caught up to the former which is why the latter was his long ago.

By Bart Barry-

Saturday the Chocolatito Era concluded when Nicaraguan Roman Gonzalez got narrowly and perhaps unfairly split-decisioned by Thailand’s Wisaksil “Srisaket Sor Rungvisai” Wangek in a brutal 12-round affair. In the mainevent a different tradition of matching the world’s best middleweight against a fellow middleweight began, when Gennady “GGG” Golovkin decisioned Daniel Jacobs, and let us hope this new era endures fractionally long as the other one did.

Whosoever would be idiot enough to write something like this: “After the decade Chocolatito labored in obscurity it brings no joy to write a match of his does not belong on American television much less HBO PPV, but heavens to Murgatroyd, this one verily does not”?

Guilty, my friends, and decisively so.

Whether Sor Rungvisai deserved to become a champion Saturday he belonged in a ring with Chocolatito in a way no one before him has done and once there he made brutal combat – disrespectful, randyrough, unfair, despicable – till he was eligible for a title few gave him a chance at (even if no one publicly gave him less of a chance than this column’s agebadly effort).

It was inevitable: If a prizefighter moves upwards in weight as he moves upwards in age someday he gets beat by a man who is not good a prizefighter as he is but able to offset class with physicality by absorbing what punches smaller men cannot and damaging with less effort than smaller men can. Exactly that happened to Chocolatito, every bit Saturday his diminutive suffix -ito, who struck Sor Rungvisai with the same accurate shots he strikes everyone with and applied much of the same tactical originality he applies to every opponent’s head and body but the difference was Sor Rungvisai’s size and desire and apparent obliviousness of who was the man punching him. Whereas the mainevent saw a b-level middleweight will himself past an obvious consciousness about his opponent’s identity – and in so doing reveal quite a lot about the actual quality of the middleweight champion (and how about the postfight sparkle in Golovkin’s eyes when asked about a September return to a junior middleweight opponent!) – the comain saw a man who showed up for a world title fight against an anonymous smaller man and acted like it.

Wherever or however Sor Rungvisai hit Chocolatito in round 1 he dropped him true and it tolled Chocolatito’s psyche finding himself seated, a ref fingerflashing overhead. It portended still worse things for anyone who hoped to enjoy Chocolatito for more than another match or two, too: You don’t make a fight-of-the-year candidate with Sor Rungvisai and go on to enjoy a long pleasant stay in your new super flyweight division. Instead you cautiously win a wellpaying rematch then cash yourself out – making, as an aside, charismatic Carlos Cuadras Saturday’s biggest loser.

On a personal note the emotions went something like: Excitement (here we go) to surprise (Chocolatito’s on the blue mat) to shame (what did I write?) to sadness (Chocolatito looks so small) to elation (he’s spinning him gorgeously!) to indignation (that butt was intentional) to anger (he butted him again) to amusement (butting when in you’re in trouble is effective in its way, isn’t it?) to excitement (he’s spinning him again, yes!) to disappointment (the geometry’s wrong) to nervousness to sadness.

Whatever dudgeon happened in the moment and however much pain Chocolatito is in today and tomorrow and the rest of the week, fact remains Sor Rungvisai, as a large southpaw, sold accidental headbutts sufficiently to remain undisqualified while severely altering a championship match’s trajectory with his head. There was little if anything accidental about any but the first butt and it was apparent three ways: 1. The timing of the accidents, 2. Chocolatito’s evident disgust with the accidents, and 3. The asymmetry of their effect. When two fighters’ heads keep colliding whenever one fighter is hurt, and the other fighter is the only one buzzed and bleeding afresh after each collision, there’s no chance at the championship level anything accidental is happening.

There are ways to remedy these things and Chocolatito, who has gone below the belt plethoras of times in his career, did none of them, and one suspects he didn’t do them because he didn’t think them necessary. First time, shame on Sor Rungvisai; second time . . . expect Chocolatito to go low early and often in a rematch the Nicaraguan’ll take personally and more seriously than their first match – and expect the new champion to be looking refereewards in the rematch more than his challenger.

While the damage suffered in the comain was asymmetrical the card itself did conclude with a symmetric quality of sorts: Chocolatito nearing the end of a career marked by increasing weightclasses and challenges; GGG beginning what one hopes is a career of fighting men large enough to hurt him – and looking only a touch better than average in so doing. While ESPN scrambles to revise its bro-science feature on Golovkin’s otherworldly power (something about Daniel Jacobs’ episode with cancer making his chin exponents more resilient than it was before both cancer and Dmitry Pirog) and HBO manufactures demand enough for Canelo-GGG to put this uncomfortable Jacobs episode behind us all, aficionados can use what they saw Saturday to temper, once more, their opinions of undefeated records.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

HBO Sports presents WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING®: GENNADY GOLOVKIN VS. DANIEL JACOBS AND ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO GONZALEZ VS. SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI, the exclusive replay of their highly anticipated world championship title fights, SATURDAY, MARCH 25 at 10:00 p.m. (ET/PT). The HBO Sports team, which was ringside at New York’s Madison Square Garden on March 18, called all the action, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.
Other HBO playdates: March 26 (10:30 a.m.) and 28 (11:00 p.m.)
HBO2 playdate: March 26 (3:45 p.m.) and 27 (11:20 p.m.)
The two-fight combo will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO® and HBO On Demand®.
Among the sport’s top pound-for-pound performers, Golovkin put his undefeated mark, extraordinary ring record and collection of 160-pound world title belts on the line against hometown hero Daniel Jacobs of Brooklyn in a fight originally carried live on HBO Pay-Per-View®. The co-feature marked a super flyweight title bout between reigning champ and pound-for-pound ace Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez and challenger Srisaket Sor Rungvisai of Thailand.

New York City (March 16, 2017) On Wednesday afternoon at Madison Square Garden a press conference was held for the HBO Pay-Per-View undercard fighters featured on the highly anticipated divisional clash between Unified Middleweight World Champion GENNADY “GGG” GOLOVKIN, (36-0, 33 KO’s) and WBA Middleweight World Champion and Mandatory Challenger, DANIEL “THE MIRACLE MAN” JACOBS, (32-1, 29 KO’s) this Saturday, March 18 at the famed venue in New York City.

The Championship Event presented by K2 Promotions will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ
“Thanks very much to everybody for coming to the press conference and thanks especially to God. I know it’s going to be a difficult fight but this is the best preparation I’ve had. I’m ready to put on a great performance.”

“Thanks very much to HBO, K2 Promotions, Teiken Promotions and my family.”

“Thank you all my fans for the support, I look forward to defending my title on Saturday night against Srisaket Sor Rungvisai here at Madison Square Garden and live on HBO Pay-Per-View.”

SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI
“I have to thank K2 Promotions, HBO and the WBC for this opportunity. This fight is for the history of Thailand and I’ve come here to win and I will get the victory for the people of Thailand.”

CARLOS CUADRAS
“I’m visiting New York City for the first time, I’m very happy to be here but it’s a little too cold for me.”

“I want to thank Tom Loeffler and K2 Promotions, Teiken Promotions and HBO and my promoters in Mexico.

“I hope Carmona is ready, I came very prepared. I hope Rungvisai is ready and I look forward to a rematch with Roman and I hope you win.”

“I am strong, I am fast and I am very, very handsome.”

DAVID SEVERO
“It’s great to be part of this card, it’s a great opportunity for me. I’m well prepared, I had an excellent training camp and once I hit the ring, I’m going to be ready to perform at my best.”

“I’m honored to be on the same card as a great champion like Gennady Golovkin.”

RYAN MARTIN
“It’s amazing to be here, amazing to be fighting at the Mecca of Boxing. I’d like to thank Tom Loeffler and K2 Promotions for this opportunity.”

“I want to thank Abel for opening up the doors for me at the Summit to train up there. Five weeks in Big Bear, six weeks in Cleveland. I’m definitely 100% prepared for Saturday night and ready to put on a show and showcase my skills on this platform.”

TOM LOEFFLER, Managing Director of K2 Promotions
“While the main event has gotten much of the interest so far, when you see the great fighters on the stage here today, it really shows how deep this card is with such a strong international interest from the media and fans.”

“There will be a lot fireworks in the arena on Saturday with the two best middleweights and all these other world class fighters. We’d really like to thank Madison Square Garden for their support of this event, Gennady Golovkin has really made the Garden his home.”

“Fighting at The Mecca of Boxing is really the dream of most fighters.”
_________________________________

Consensus #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter in the World and World Boxing Council (WBC) Super Flyweight Champion ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ, (46-0-0, 38 KO’s), fighting out of Managua, Nicaragua, will defend his title against Mandatory Challenger SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI (41-4-1, (38 KO’s) of Si Sa Ket, Thailand

Former World Boxing Council (WBC) Super Flyweight Champion CARLOS “PRINCIPE” CUADRAS, (35-1-1, 27 KO’s) of Mexico City, Mexico returns to battle against cross-town rival and Former World Title Challenger DAVID “SEVERO” CARMONA, (20-3-5, 8 KO’s), also of Mexico City, Mexico.

Top Lightweight Prospects, WBC Lightweight Continental Americas Champion, RYAN “BLUE CHIP” MARTIN, (17-0, 10 KO’s) of Cleveland, Ohio via Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Port Chester, New York’s BRYANT “PEE WEE” CRUZ, (17-1-0, 8 KO’s) will battle in a scheduled ten rounder.

GOLOVKIN vs. JACOBS is presented by K2 Promotions. Tickets priced at $1000, $600, $400, $300, $200 and $100, are now on sale and can be purchased at the Madison Square Garden Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster charge by phone (866-858-0008) and online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.thegarden.com

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BERNIE BAHRMASEL: Good afternoon and Good Morning to the international press and thanks very much for joining us on this Media Conference Call promoting the highly anticipated World Middleweight Championship between Unified Middleweight World Champion GENNADY “GGG” GOLOVKIN, (36-0, 33 KO’s) and WBA Middleweight World Champion and Mandatory Challenger DANIEL “The Miracle Man” JACOBS, (32-1, 29 KO’s) set for Saturday, March 18 from THE Mecca of Boxing, Madison Square Garden in New York City.

The Championship Event presented by K2 Promotions will be produced and distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View starting at 9pm ET, 6pm PT. Tickets for the live event which are moving fast, may be purchased online through Ticketmaster and TheGarden.com

Joining us first on the call today is the Consensus #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter in the World from his training camp in Costa Rica, ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ. Sporting a record of 46-0 with 38 knockouts, Roman is joined on the call by his longtime manager CARLOS BLANDON to discuss his WBC Super Flyweight World Championship defense against Mandatory Challenger SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI, (41-4-1, 38 KO’s), in the co-main event on March 18th.

Later in the call, we will joined by former WBC Super Flyweight World Champion CARLOS “PRINCIPE” CUADRAS and his trainer RUDY HERNANDEZ who are wrapping up camp in Los Angeles, California.

In a special attraction 10-round super flyweight bout on the HBO Pay-Per-View, Cuadras will battle Mexico City cross-town arch rival DAVID “SEVERO” CARMONA.

This past September 10 at the Fabulous Forum and telecast, “Chocolatito”and Cuadras clashed in one of the best fights of 2016, as Roman Gonzalez won his fourth division world title.

TOM LOEFFLER: We couldn’t be more excited to have ‘Chocolatito’ back on the show with Gennady and it is a great match-up. On any other show it would clearly be the main event. ‘Chocolatito’ headlined the show last September at the Fabulous Forum and had a tremendous victory over Carlos Cuadras winning a world title in his fourth weight division and is universally considered the No. 1 pound for pound fighter in the world. We are excited for this match-up. It is a tough match-up that’s mandated by the WBC against Rungvisai from Thailand who is a very big puncher and I know many boxing fans are really looking forward to this fight. With that I would like to introduce Carlos Blandon to say a few words. He has been with Roman in training camp.

CARLOS BLANDON: I would like to thank everyone that is making this possible – HBO, Teiken Promotions and K2 Promotions and Madison Square Garden for hosting us once again on March 18. Roman and the whole ‘Chocolatito’ team is very excited and happy once again to be showcasing Roman’s talents at Madison Square Garden, The Mecca of Boxing, and we think it is going to be an excellent night of boxing on fight night. And thanks to Gennady, who we admire and we are very happy to be fighting under his name once again. At the same time having Carlos Cuadras with Rudy Hernandez being able to fight before us makes for a full program of action.

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: First of all I want to say that we are ready for next Saturday. I want to thank God and I want to thank HBO and K2 Promotions and Madison Square Garden. Everything has gone great during this camp and once again it is an honor to be on a card featuring Gennady Golovkin and Daniel Jacobs.

How was it to be a headliner on your last show?

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: It was a great opportunity in Los Angeles that HBO gave me to fight Carlos Cuadras in the feature fight. It was a great fight with an amazing atmosphere. The fans from Mexico and Nicaragua came out. I think it showed that I have the power that I can fill a big arena like the Forum. I was very happy and to be the co-feature with Golovkin is another great opportunity and I realize that there are going to be a lot of fans of Nicaraguan descent that will descend upon Madison Square Garden and I want to give them a very positive result.

How was it fighting at the heavier weight? You got touched up a little in the Cuadras fight. Do you feel you can dominate at the heavier weight?

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: I have always had respect for my opponent and it was a very tough fight at 115. Never did I think it was going to be easy campaigning in this division at 115 – it takes time to get used to and I think that’s what is happening at the moment but I think I will be fine.

What was the reception like when you returned home after not only winning another world title but passing the legend of Arguello by winning a fourth world title?

That day was very memorable when I returned home. People were lined up in the streets and they were greeting me all over and to be honest, being home, they gave me their love. The people of Nicaragua gave me their love and without question it makes me so happy to represent the country of Nicaragua, that now after winning this world title I have to hold onto it.

Do you feel a need move to move to higher weight divisions or do you feel you are fighting for the guys in the lower weight classes?

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: From a legacy standpoint I have already accomplished a lot and now my goal is to hold onto my fourth world title in order to gain higher purses and more money and I want to continue to show that I am a quality fighter and I am a great fighter and I want to move forward and I think a second fight with Cuadras will certainly do that. But I am fixed on holding on to this world title moving forward.

What do you want to accomplish next?

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: A fourth world title was something that was an absolute blessing. I want to thank God and it meant so much to me. No, aside from holding onto my world title, I could possibly go for a fifth world championship – in a different weight division – but first I understand that I need to hold onto to this title at the moment.

How many tickets are left for the fight at Madison Square Garden?

TOM LOEFFLER: The tickets are selling very well. The last show where Gennady and ‘Chocolatito’ had fought together at the Garden in October 2015, we were completely sold out and right now the tickets are ahead of that. So we expect a sold out arena and the fans have reacted to the combination again of Gennady and ‘Chocolatito’ on the same show.

How does this opponent compare to Cuadras and what type of challenges do you expect?

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: I always know it’s going to be a different rival and challenge. Against Carlos Cuadras it was a great fight and I certainly learned a lot in that match-up and especially in my training camp. On this one coming up on the 18th of March, I expect a great fight and I want to put on a great fight for the fans and I realize what I have to do because at the end of the day I want to have my had raised in victory.

Do you want to fight Cuadras again? How did that fight compare to the toughest you have had?

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: As I look at a fight coming up against Carlos Cuadras again I realize I have to train harder. Every opponent presents different challenges. I do believe that the second fight, the rematch, will be better. But heading into the rematch, assuming all goes according to plan, I will be confident and I know he will be a little bit more because of the time we shared in the ring. I do believe I can go out there and get the knockout in the rematch.

Do you feel better training in Costa Rica than in California?

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: Every camp is very good. Every camp runs very well when it comes to training in Costa Rica. I like it because I almost feel at home as if in Nicaragua. There are mountains here and water and I just feel so comfortable in Costa Rica.

You have a tough fight coming up on the 18th and Cuadras says that you didn’t want the rematch immediately…

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: It doesn’t really matter what he says. If he wants to go ahead and get into a verbal match with me, that’s not what I am going to focus on. I am the champion right now. I realize that the rematch is down the line. I have a lot of respect for him. I am fighting for the lower weight classes and a rematch will be in the cards if it does transpire. That will happen down the line and I am all about fighting for the lower weight classes to make them prominent in boxing.

This is a tough time in the United States for Hispanics and Latinos . . .

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: My fight is for the public. I am always very happy for the adulation. These days I want to move forward and make people happy by my performance.

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ: Thank you very much to all of the public, God bless you and we will see you Saturday on March 18.

CARLOS BLANDON: We are so appreciative of everything and getting ready for March 18 – Roman is training his heart out. You are going to see a faster and stronger Roman and wee are putting everything in God’s hands. Thanks again to HBO Teiken and K2 and The Garden for making this possible.

__________________________________

RUDY HERNANDEZ: We are ready and we are just wishing the fight was tomorrow.

CARLOS CUADRAS: I am very well trained and I am excited for this fight. My goal is to come out and win against Carmona on March 18

When you fought Chocolatito, did you feel as if you were fighting for the smaller weight classes?

CARLOS CUADRAS: We are obviously fighting for higher purses and we are representing the lighter weight classes. We are going to give a show and demonstrate our high quality action. But we do realize when we fight inside that ring that we can provide action and put on a show as good as if not better than the higher weight classes and that will lead to more lucrative purses and higher paydays down the line.

Chocolatito has talked about fighting at 118. Would you accept a rematch at 118?

CARLOS CUADRAS: I will do it at whatever weight he wants to do it at. If he wants to fight and do the rematch at 118, no problem. We can even do the rematch in the heavyweight division. It will be a great fight. I am going to bring the fight to him. I have the medicine in my hands and the power to get after and to dispel of ‘Chocolatito’.

You always seem happy and smiling in such a brutal sport…

CARLOS CUADRAS: I love boxing and boxing is my life. If someone has a passion for something in anything that they do it shows and with me I love boxing. It is absolutely my life and I enjoy being in the gym competing against great fighters, partaking in the sport of boxing and it is something that I really love.

Do you think that helps lighten the pressure?

CARLOS CUADRAS: I enjoy the moment. I don’t let the pressure get to me. I don’t pay attention to that. I get to fight in these massive arenas. Every day when I step in the ring my focus is squarely on the opponent across from me. Thank you very much and say hello to all of those in Mexico!

Juan Francisco Estrada has called you out – so what do you think about him or ‘Chocolatito’?

CARLOS CUADRAS: Juan Francisco Estrada is a great fighter and it is almost a guarantee since we are both of Mexican descent that we will collide at some point down the line. But it is true that I want to fight Chocolatito in the rematch. That is what I want. He has the world title and that is what I want. But down the line we will have a match with Estrada.

What do you think about the Canelo-Chavez Jr. fight?

CARLOS CUADRAS: Julio Cesar Chavez should win the fight. He is bigger and he is stronger and if he comes in condition and ready to perform at the highest level I think he should get the victory.

How do the Mexican fans respond to you?

CARLOS CUADRAS: As to the response of the Mexican boxing fans they absolutely embrace me following my fight with Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez.

Do you feel that, since you did not get an immediate rematch, that it may not happen at all?

I do believe that he is running from me. He has fear of me. Look, if he wants to fight me at 118, no problem. I will go up to 118 pounds. Whatever weight he is, if he will give me the fight, I will be there and I will fight him in the rematch.

How much of a chance do you give Rungvisai against Chocolatito?

Rungvisai is a very strong opponent and hits hard. If Chocolatito allows him to have his distance, he could knock him out so he has to be wary. He is a very tough and dangerous opponent, as I can attest to.

RUDY HERNANDEZ: Carlos is looking to shine on March 18 and hopes to steal the show and hopes HBO gives him the opportunity to fight again.

CARLOS CUADRAS: I have watched Carmona fight. He is from Mexico City and we are fellow countrymen. I think he is a very tough fighter. I watched his last fight when he lost by unanimous decision. But I am going to go out there and I will be looking for the knockout.

TOM LOEFFLER: We are excited to have both Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez and Carlos Cuadras on the card. This is a tremendous show that we have put together. They had a war in September of last year and Carlos lost a close decision and we wanted to feature him because he was a crowd favorite. Now with Roman defending his title against the mandatory and GGG versus Jacobs we are very excited for next week.

____________________________________

Consensus #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter and WBC Super Flyweight World Champion ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ, (46-0, 38 KO’s) will make the first defense of his fourth divisional world title against Thailand’s SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI, (41-4-1, 38 KO’s) on Saturday, March 18 at The Mecca of Boxing, Madison Square Garden.

In a special attraction 10-round clash, former WBC Super Flyweight World Champion CARLOS “PRINCIPE” CUADRAS, (35-1-1, 27 KO’s) battles cross-town rival DAVID “SEVERO” CARMONA, (20-3-5, 8 KO’s) of Mexico City.

The Championship Event presented by K2 Promotions will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.

On September 10, 2016, Gonzalez and Cuadras battled in an epic “Fight of the Year” candidate at The Fabulous Forum in Los Angeles. After twelve outstandin rounds of action, Gonzalez was declared the victor. The fight was telecast live on HBO.

Headlining the HBO Pay-Per-View event from on Saturday, March 18, Unified Middleweight World Champion GENNADY “GGG” GOLOVKIN, (36-0, 33 KO’s) will defend his titles (WBC, WBA, IBF, IBO) against WBA Middleweight World Champion and Mandatory Challenger DANIEL “THE MIRACLE MAN” JACOBS, (32-1, 29 KO’s) in a highly anticipated divisional showdown.

Golovkin and Jacobs have an extraordinary, combined 35 consecutive knockouts heading into this highly anticipated batt

GOLOVKIN vs. JACOBS is presented by K2 Promotions. Tickets priced at $1000, $600, $400, $300, $200 and $100, are now on sale and can be purchased at the Madison Square Garden Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster charge by phone (866-858-0008) and online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.thegarden.com

SOCIAL MEDIA — #GGGJACOBS

Gennady “GGG” Golovkin
@GGGBoxing – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Daniel Jacobs
@DanielJacobsTKO – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez
@ChocolatitoBox – Twitter
@ChocolatitoOfficial – Facebook
@Chocolatito87 – Instagram

Carlos Cuadras
@CuadrasOficial – Twitter
@CarlosCuadras – Facebook
@CuadrasOficial — Instagram

HBO
@HBO, @HBOBoxing – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Madison Square Garden
@TheGarden – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Tom Loeffler (K2 Promotions)
@TomLoeffler1 — Twitter

By Bart Barry

Saturday at Madison Square Garden on the undercard of HBO’s pay-per-view match for the unified middleweight championship of the world, the world’s best prizefighter, Nicaraguan Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez, will defend his super flyweight title against Wisaksil “Srisaket Sor Rungvisai” Wangek, a fighter whose recent reign of terror on Thailand’s amateur program Chocolatito should bring to a brisk and violent conclusion – and perhaps rekindle in so doing.

After the decade Chocolatito labored in obscurity it brings no joy to write a match of his does not belong on American television much less HBO PPV, but heavens to Murgatroyd, this one verily does not. Instead this represents the sort of back-wages wager Bernard Hopkins taught prizefighters to make with their managers and promoters and broadcasters, today marginally more one-in-the-same as they’ve ever been, once acclaim was had and serious observers were seriously interested in observing one fight. We shall hitherto call it the Morrade Hakkar Clause in homage to the silly Frenchman HBO approved for the second defense of a middleweight title Hopkins won from Felix Trinidad in the greatest moment of Hopkins’ career to that point. Before Hopkins’ negative fighting style and self-intoxication were considered alternately brilliant and charismatic they were considered properly unbearable but HBO was hot on the trail of a rematch between Hopkins and Roy Jones Jr. in 2002 and eager to agree to most any demands Hopkins made, and Hopkins’ demands, inspired by Jones’ demands, were wild for a man who couldn’t sell 8,000 tickets in his hometown but reasonable through a lens of his accomplishments and Time Warner’s annual corporate revenues. HBO acquiesced and Hopkins-Hakkar was atrocious.

And Trinidad put Hopkins through fractionally the suffering Chocolatito experienced against Carlos Cuadras in September, writing of back wages, which is part of the reason Chocolatito mentioned HBO by name in December:

“I’m 29 years-old, and one has to seize the moment we are in,” Chocolatito said. “I will give a rematch to Cuadras, but I need a good purse from HBO. I believe I deserve it.”

As a craftsman of course Chocolatito deserves it but as an entertainer he likely doesn’t and it’s no one’s fault he believes he does because, after all, America sells meritocracy to the rest of the world, and so why shouldn’t the prizefighter American aficionados consider the world’s best make 0.4-percent the purse the last guy Americans considered the world’s best made against Manny Pacquiao? Because we didn’t know what the hell we were doing a few years ago and we still don’t – that’s the honest answer, but what American businessman’s honest enough to say it, and what Nicaraguan’d be ingenuous enough to believe it?

Instead we’ll cite the dynamics of a free market, when convenient, while having the world’s best fighter defending a title in his fourth weightclass on the undercard of a middleweight-unification bout, HBO champion vs. PBC, between two men who’ve never chanced a moment outside the middleweight division, though the HBO champion is frequently reportedly willing to fight anyone between 154 and 168 pounds and hobbled only by junior middleweights who won’t come up to 160 and super middleweights who won’t come down to 160 but otherwise ready, willing and able. The main event is expected to be mismatched enough for last week’s prefight promotion to be about gossiping whether the HBO champion has time between Saturday’s inevitable defense and September’s better-paying inevitable defense to make another inevitable defense in June.

Not to be outdone Roman Gonzalez will fight Wisaksil “Srisaket Sor Rungvisai” Wangek, a man whose last two opponents sported a cumulative record of 0-0 before Sor Rungvisai, in his 45th and 46th prizefights respectively, welcomed them harshly to the professional ranks, in a match Gonzalez will win decisively no matter his opponent’s physical advantage. There’s no way to rehearse for someone gifted as Gonzalez, though if fighting men in their pro debuts properly prepares Sor Rungvisai for Chocolatito, one weeps for the futures of amateur heavyweight boxers with Deontay Wilder on the loose. Absurd as we rightly consider most athletic commissions in the U.S. how about that Thai commission(s) approving the WBC silver super flyweight champion for four 2016 matches against opponents with a cumulative record of 15-19! (Sor Rungvisai fought as many men making their pro debuts in his eighth year of professional fighting in Thailand as he did the year he made his own pro debut.)

There’s no occasion for not being snide on occasions such as these but enough of the griping: Any opportunity to see Chocolatito ply his wares must be embraced because Chocolatito is a rare talent, and as aficionados we owe HBO a debt of gratitude for bringing him more exposure, a debt all aficionados will argue is still much less than the cost of an HBO subscription and quarterly pay-per-view bills, but some gratitude’s due nevertheless. From Saturday’s victory things’ll go one of two ways for Chocolatito: After taking another 36 minutes of abuse from a career super flyweight he’ll double his demands for a rematch with Carlos Cuadras and price himself back to obscurity, or he’ll glide so easily through Sor Rungvisai and receive such disapprobation from the Nicaraguan media – “Stop talking about money like an American, Alexi never did; you’re better than that, you’re a Nicaraguan” – he’ll abandon his campaign to match compensation to achievement and return to beating fellow world champions for somewhat less than he deserves but way more than another 115-pound athlete makes in the world.

Making him what Floyd Mayweather would call a “dummy” and historians will call an “all-time great.”

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

March 3, 2017 – Leading up to the highly anticipated stacked world championship boxing card highlighted by the appearance of Gennady Golovkin, Danny Jacobs, “Chocolatito” Gonzalez and Carlos Cuadras on Saturday, March 18 and presented live by HBO Pay-Per-View® – HBO Sports will present the exclusive replay of three hard-hitting all-action encounters that highlight the remarkable skill and power of these ring warriors.

On Friday, March 10 at 12:05 a.m. (ET/PT) and Saturday, March 11 at 10:50 a.m. (ET/PT), HBO2 will replay back-to-back Golovkin vs. Brook 2016, Jacobs vs. Smith 2009 and “Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Cuadras 2016. This past September at The O2 in London, Gennady Golovkin traveled to Kell Brook’s hometown and extended his consecutive knockout streak to 23 in a row with a fifth round stoppage against the then undefeated prize fighter. On August 22, 2009, top prospect Daniel Jacobs displayed incredible resilience and ring skills against Ishe Smith with a 10-round unanimous decision victory. Last September in a Fight-of-the-Year candidate, consensus #1 pound for pound fighter in the world, “Chocolatito” Gonzalez claimed a title in a fourth weight class against Carlos Cuadras in what was the toughest and roughest encounter of his career.

All three fights will also be available 24 hours a day on HBO NOW, HBO On Demand®, HBO GO® subscribers and affiliate portals beginning Monday, March 6.

Golovkin vs. Jacobs, “Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Rungvisai and Cuadras vs. Carmona takes place Saturday, March 18 from at the Mecca of Boxing, Madison Square Garden and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/ 6:00 p.m. PT.

March 1, 2017 – HBO Sports® debuts an all-new installment of “2 Days” when the acclaimed feature segment returns Saturday, March 11 at approximately 1:00 a.m. (ET/PT) or immediately following the HBO BOXING AFTER DARK card from Verona, NY with a behind-the-scenes look at the consensus No. 1 rated fighter in the world, Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez.

“2 Days” is a revealing and intimate look at a 48-hour span in the life of a boxer in the lead-up to one of his fights and the next edition will focus on Nicaraguan native “Chocolatito Gonzalez. HBO cameras followed the undefeated super flyweight sensation and pound-for-pound king last September when he faced off with Carlos Cuadras in front of a roaring crowd at the Forum in Inglewood, CA. The win was Gonzalez’s 46th consecutive triumph as a pro and secured a title in his fourth weight division.

Gonzalez will make his 2017 ring debut on March 18 when he co-headlines a stacked pay-per-view card from New York’s Madison Square Garden. “Chocolatito” will defend his crown against Thailand’s Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (41-4-1, 38 KOs). The event will begin at 9:00 p.m. ET/ 6:00 p.m. PT.

“2 Days” will also be available on the HBO On Demand® service, HBO NOW®, HBO GO® and at www.hbo.com/boxing as well as affiliate portals that distribute the series.

ANAGUA, NICARAGUA (January 23, 2017) Consensus #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter in the World and World Boxing Council (WBC) Super Flyweight Champion ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ, (46-0-0, 38 KO’s), held court in front of a huge crowd of Nicaraguan media before heading to Costa Rica for training camp in preparations to defend his title against Mandatory Challenger SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI (41-4-1, (38 KO’s) of Si Sa Ket, Thailand, on Saturday, March 18, 2017, at “The Mecca of Boxing”, Madison Square Garden.

Gonzalez is one of the country’s most popular figures, having been mentored by Nicaraguan boxing legend, the late ALEXIS ARGUELLO. In his last fight, a brilliant 12-round decision over CARLOS CUADRAS on September 10 at The Fabulous Forum in Los Angeles and telecast on HBO, Gonzalez became a fourth divisional world champion, the first in the Nicaragua’s history.

Gonzalez was joined at the press conference by his manager, CARLOS BLANDON.

ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ
“Sor Rungvisai is a fighter very tough fighter who wants my title. His fighting style suits me however I have to be careful because of his power.”

“I have all the tools to beat him. He has power but not much else but I also have to watch for possible head-butts.”

“Training in Costa Rica is very good for me. I’ve never liked the cold and right now it’s too cold in Big Bear.”

“I have no problem giving Carlos Cuadras a rematch but right now my focus is on Sor Rungvisai who is my mandatory for the WBC.”

“I have the perfect game plan and on March 18 there will be no surprises. I’m leaving Monday, we had a great camp in Costa Rica for the McWilliams Arroyo fight and we are planning to have another great camp for this fight there.”

“I feel very confident that I will be victorious for my fans here in Nicaragua and all over the world, those watching on HBO Pay-Per-View and those in attendance in Madison Square Garden. I loved fighting in New York City last time and look forward to March 18 when I return.”

“With the passing of my longtime trainer Arnulfo Obando, my head trainer will now be my father Luis Gonzalez and also in my corner will be Wilmer Hernandez. They were both assistants to Arnulfo throughout my career.”

CARLOS BLANDON
“We are very excited to start training in Costa Rica on Monday (January 23). Hopefully we will have the same excellent result we did when we trained there for McWilliams Arroyo.”

“Right now it’s snowing and cold in Big Bear and we feel it’s better for Roman to train in Costa Rica where it is warmer, although in Big Bear was where Roman had one of his best training camps before the Carlos Cuadras fight.”

“I expect that with the proper preparations in training camp that we will see an explosive fight and another great victory for Roman on March 18.”

Chocolatito vs. Rungvisai will be the co-feature to the World Middleweight Championship between Unified Middleweight World Champion GENNADY “GGG” GOLOVKIN, (36-0-0, 33 KO’s) and WBA Middleweight World Champion and Mandatory Challenger DANIEL “THE MIRACLE MAN” JACOBS, (32-1, 29 KO’s). The event will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT

Presented by K2 Promotions in association with Teiken Promotions, tickets priced at $1000, $600, $400, $300, $200 and $100, are now on sale and can be purchased at the Madison Square Garden Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster charge by phone (866-858-0008) and online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.thegarden.com

NEW YORK CITY (January 17, 2017) Consensus #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter in the World and World Boxing Council (WBC) Super Flyweight Champion ROMAN “CHOCOLATITO” GONZALEZ, (46-0-0, 38 KO’s), fighting out of Managua, Nicaragua, will defend his title against Mandatory Challenger SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI (41-4-1, (38 KO’s) of Si Sa Ket, Thailand, on Saturday, March 18, 2017, at “The Mecca of Boxing”, Madison Square Garden.

Chocolatito vs. Rungvisai will be the co-feature to the World Middleweight Championship between Unified Middleweight World Champion GENNADY “GGG” GOLOVKIN, (36-0-0, 33 KO’s) and WBA Middleweight World Champion and Mandatory Challenger DANIEL “THE MIRACLE MAN” JACOBS, (32-1, 29 KO’s). The event will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT

Presented by K2 Promotions in association with Teiken Promotions, tickets priced at $1000, $600, $400, $300, $200 and $100, are now on sale and can be purchased at the Madison Square Garden Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster charge by phone (866-858-0008) and online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.thegarden.com

“I’m very excited to fight again at Madison Square Garden. Thanks to Mr. Honda and the Teiken family along with K2 Promotions and the HBO Pay-Per-View Team for this tremendous opportunity, “said Gonzalez.

“Rungvisai is a very tough fight for me, I know that he has fought many other great fighters including Carlos Cuadras, but with my training and the blessing of God I plan to come out victorious.”

Said Rungvisai, “I respect Roman Gonzalez. He is a legend. He has done great things for boxing, especially by showing the world how talented and exciting smaller weight fighters can be. I am happy for Nicaragua to have such a great hero. However, super flyweight is my weight. And the WBC Super Flyweight World title belt is my belt. I will do whatever it takes to win my belt back, and I am confident I can do it. I was able to hurt Carlos Cuadras in the way that Gonzalez could not. Cuadras did not hurt me when we fought but he hurt Gonzalez throughout their fight last year. I am confident I can beat Roman Gonzalez. And the fight will not go twelve rounds.”

“I have to thank WBC, HBO, and K2 Promotions for this great opportunity. It is my dream to fight at Madison Square Garden. I am thrilled to be the first Thai to fight there on HBO Pay-Per-View against the #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter in the World. This is history. I will fight for Thailand and my family. I will fight to bring back the WBC Superflyweight belt to Thailand where it belongs. Some fans in America might not know me well, but I have knockout power and I will go there to win. I cannot be more excited to show you and the world who Srisaket Sor Rungvisai is. It will be a great fight on March 18th. ”

“We’re very excited to bring “Chocolatito” back to the ‘Mecca of Boxing’, Madison Square Garden and to have his fight co-featured on this HBO Pay-Per-View,” said Tom Loeffler, Managing Director of K2 Promotions. “Rungvisai is an excellent fighter and this will be a very tough challenge for Roman in the first defense of his WBC Super Flyweight World Title won in his epic battle with Carlos Cuadras on September 10th which was telecast on HBO from The Fabulous Forum in Los Angeles.”

“This will be the fifth time Roman and Gennady have fought on the same telecast, they are truly the best combination in boxing to provide fans the maximum value which is always our aim in these promotions for fans in attendance and watching on HBO Pay-Per-View.”

“We are thrilled to have the consensus #1 pound for pound fighter, Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez, as the co-feature for this explosive event”, said Tony Walker, Vice President, HBO Sports. “Chocolatito will take on mandatory challenger Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in what we expect to be an all-action fight. Featuring two of the consensus top fighters in the world on the same card underscores the value of the March 18 HBO Pay-Per-View event.”

This past September 10, the 29-year-old Gonzalez faced the biggest challenge of his career, facing undefeated WBC Super Flyweight Champion Carlos Cuadras as he sought his fourth divisional world title. In a 2016 ‘Fight of the Year’ candidate in front of a very large and passionate crowd at the iconic venue, The Fabulous Forum in Los Angeles, Gonzalez won a 12-round unanimous decision.

The victory, dedicated to Gonzalez’s mentor, boxing legend Alexis Arguello, distinguished Gonzalez as the first fighter from Nicaragua to earn four divisional world titles and further validated his status as the sport’s Consensus #1 Pound-for-Pound Fighter.

On October 17, 2015, Gonzalez made his debut at “The World’s Most Famous Arena” knocking out four-division world champion Brian Viloria in the ninth round in front of a sold-out Madison Square Garden and live on HBO Pay-Per-View. The victory took place on the undercard to the World Middleweight Championship between Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and David Lemieux.

The 30-year-old heavy-handed Rungvisai will be fighting for the first time in the United States against Gonzalez. A four-time world title challenger, Rungvisai challenged then WBC Super Flyweight Champion Carlos Cuadras on May 31, 2014.

In an action-packed battle featuring excellent two-way action, Rungvisai was the unfortunate victim of a shortened bout as Cuadras was deemed unable to continue after the eighth round following an accidental clash of heads between the two warriors. Going to the scorecards, Rungvisai came up just short with Cuadras retaining his title.

SOCIAL MEDIA — #GGGJACOBS, #CHOCOLATITORUNGVISAI

Gennady “GGG” Golovkin
@GGGBoxing – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Daniel Jacobs
@DanielJacobsTKO – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Roman Gonzalez
@ChocolatitoBox

HBO
@HBO, @HBOBoxing – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Madison Square Garden
@TheGarden – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Tom Loeffler (K2 Promotions)
@TomLoeffler1 — Twitter

Roman Gonzalez will defend the WBC Super Flyweight title against Srisaket Sor Rungvisai on March 18th at Madison Square Garden as the co-feature bout on the Gennady Golovkin – Daniel Jacobs Middleweight unification bout, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“Many people consider Sor Rungvisai more dangerous or just as dangerous as Cuadras. This is not an easier fight than a rematch with Cuadras,” Gonzalez U.S. representative Tom Loeffler told ESPN. “Roman and his team decided to fight Srisaket with the winner having to fight Cuadras.”

“He is a very dangerous opponent for Roman and even though many of the U.S. fans might not know him, the boxing people know him,” Loeffler said. “When we have the combination of GGG and Chocolatito in arguably the toughest fights of their career on the same card, that’s the type of value we want to provide for the fans that come to Madison Square Garden or the fans who buy the card on HBO PPV.”

“This will be their fifth appearance on the same broadcast together. It’s a great combination when you have the two best pound-for-pound fighters in the world on the same show,” Loeffler said. “The fans can see the talent level these guys have. All four of these fighters are extremely talented. That’s a winning combination for the fans.”

It’s a holiday treat for HBO Boxing fans. Over four consecutive nights in late December, HBO will present six of the year’s standout fights, spotlighting some of the biggest names in the sport. Featured are signature wins by Canelo Alvarez, Terence Crawford, Gennady Golovkin, Roman Gonzalez and Andre Ward plus a leading candidate for “Fight of the Year.”

Starting Tuesday, Dec. 27, HBO will replay six major league showdowns from this year sprinkled over four consecutive nights. All the fights will also be available on HBO ON DEMAND® as well as the HBO NOW and HBO GO® services.

The “Boxing’s Best” lineup includes:

Tuesday, December 27 Canelo Alvarez vs. Amir Khan &
11:00 p.m. ET/PT Sergey Kovalev vs. Andre Ward

Wednesday, December 28 Gennady Golovkin vs. Kell Brook &
11:30 p.m. ET/PT Terence Crawford vs. Viktor Postol

Thursday, December 29 Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Carlos Cuadras
11:00 p.m. ET/PT

Friday, December 30 Francisco Vargas vs. Orlando Salido
11:00 p.m. ET/PT

*Winners names are in italics, Vargas-Salido ended in a majority draw.

By Bart Barry-

In Tokyo on Sept. 5, 2014, Roman Gonzalez became the second Nicaraguan prizefighter to become a three-division world champion, putting him deservedly beside his late mentor Alexis Arguello, and it brought more emotion than he appeared to expect. Gonzalez marked the achievement and defense of his other world titles with understated celebrations but not in Tokyo. His third championship won, his blue gloves folded on his raised brown forehead, Gonzalez wandered in circles sobbing.

By early 2014 Chocolatito’s postfight comportment had begun to manifest nothing quite so much as gratitude, perhaps life’s most universally attractive quality because it confidently expresses something akin to humility but better: However much I deserve, I’ve received slightly more, and I’m aware it didn’t have to be like that. Maybe Chocolatito’s gratitude began with his religious devotion – by now he wore “Dios Te Ama (God Loves You)” on the back of his every pair of trunks – or perhaps a simple, rational accounting led him to recognize he was given superior athleticism and a mentor like El Flaco Explosivo, both exceptional and exceptionally available, but his sense of atonement certainly came from his deep religiosity and began showing itself in the way he treated opponents immediately after bludgeoning them with a talent God gave him to hurt other men deeply and permanently.

If Chocolatito’s calculus did not figure how much more permanently he would hurt opponents at higher weightclasses, men whose thicker necks and larger bodies absorbed more concussive force while their brains did not, he intuited it and began to clean his opponents’ faces and look after their wellbeings more firmly in 2014, instructing the trainers of the men he felled where to apply icepacks and how to look after their charges. There was nothing unprofessionally merciful about what Chocolatito did while a fight was on, though; he realized combat with larger men brought disproportionately more peril, especially when they were hurt, and he finished them with his same quickness as before and increased ferocity. But he saw in the men’s sudden imbalance and brokenspiritedness how much dangerously further these larger men’s bodies and wills took them after their brains wanted no more. Too confident to doubt his power as he fought larger opponents Chocolatito kept a private tally of how harshly he must treat these larger men – the greater sums of fully leveraged, completely pronated, precisely placed punches he now delivered them.

Because his purity of technique went nowhere. Properly grown in his new 112-pound division, trim and light once more, Chocolatito began fights with uppercuts to the head as diversions from what hooks he planned for the body to sap what strength kept the hands highly protective till they dropped and others’ unconsciousnesses went irresistibly to his hooks and crosses. He didn’t mind missing in his new weightclass either – a return to indifference: So long as a punch was balanced properly and executed with intent it mattered little if it landed because it cost even less to stop it and cocked its successor anyway and that one’d land.

Gonzalez needed to throw every punch wickedly in his new division, a lesson processed in Chocolatito’s six-round February beating of Mexican Juan “El Loquito” Kantun in Chiapas and three-round April leathering of Filipino Juan Purisima in Japan, because his handlers knew he was a generational talent they didn’t intend to fiddle in a nostalgia quest for unification, belt-collecting or purse-aggrandizement: Chocolatito’s first title fight at flyweight was against the division’s best man, Japan’s Akira Yaegashi, for The Ring’s flyweight championship, in Tokyo.

Yaegashi was larger than Chocolatito and stronger and more physical and forced the Nicaraguan backwards with jabs in the first round. Chocolatito retreated and counterpunched but didn’t run, and guarded against Yaegashi’s invitational traps and lowered hands and ropesward stumbles. In round three Yaegashi opened a hook off his cross, 2-3, and Chocolatito’s 3 was shorter and corkscrewed the champion to the mat. Yaegashi rose undissuaded and less chastened and continued a spectacle whose violence befit its world-championship occasion. Five rounds of combat did little to soften the Japanese and Chocolatito met in round 9 a belligerence nearer Yaegashi’s very best than he faced till then. The desperation with which Yaegashi opened the ninth belied his resources and betrayed his hopelessness, and 39 prizefights and thousands more hours of sparring and their tens of thousands of lessons in completing patterns, all, told Chocolatito th’t Yaegashi was on his way out and there was nothing to be done now but throw punches to the head to raise the guard then throw punches to the body to lower the guard then throw punches to the head till either the referee’s forbearance or Yaegashi’s consciousness lost attrition’s race, and it was a tie when Yaegashi dropped from physical failure and concussion.

Chocolatito needed a signature win no more than Leo Tolstoy needed a signature story – such talents don’t define themselves like that – but he had one just the same against a larger man who made him make creative choices like ending combinations with a jab, youth-boxing style, and so in 2014 Gonzalez was the world’s best prizefighter even while the world argued about great fighters well past their primes and good fighters lollygagging through their primes. Chocolatito returned to Japan two months later for his first flyweight title defense and fourth match of 2014 and wrecked Filipino Rocky Fuentes in six rounds then brought his championship home to Managua and began 2015 by roughly disciplining Mexican journeyman Valentin Leon for 6 1/2 minutes.

After that, things serendipitous happened for Gonzalez and HBO and aficionados. Y’all know the rest of the Chocolatito story from here.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

BY Bart Barry-

Roman Gonzalez made the sixth and final defense of his light flyweight title on Nov. 17, 2012, at Los Angeles’ Sports Arena against Mexican Juan Francisco “El Gallo” Estrada, a defense difficult enough to be Chocolatito’s last at that weight one way or another. Gonzalez had by then grown too large to make 108 pounds effectively and very nearly gave away too many opening rounds to decision Estrada – who since losing to Gonzalez has gone 8-0 (4 KOs) and beaten Brian Viloria and stopped Giovani Segura and iced Hernan Marquez.

The unfailing benefit for the aficionado of watching a great fighter make matches against increasingly larger foes is the adjustments the great fighter necessarily makes because what works against a man smaller than you often fails against a man larger than you and very few professional athletes grow into new physiques immediately or properly. Exceptional in a host of other ways, in 2013 Gonzalez would prove himself every bit susceptible to this rule as another athlete.

When Chocolatito completed his light flyweight reign against El Gallo Estrada it was a pitched contest either man might’ve won by decision but Gonzalez won in some part for being champion – the fighter even impartial judges unconsciously watch more closely. Estrada chose a world title fight to make his 108-pound debut having made each of his career’s preceding 27 prizefights between 112 and 119 pounds and the advantage of size Estrada enjoyed was not lost on Chocolatito who had formed a habit – neither yet good nor bad – of alternately hanging his left hook and bringing it home lazily, relying on head movement to duck the rightcrosses his opponents never failed to throw. And when he didn’t respect an opponent’s power Chocolatito often let the triggered rightcross catch some of his left ear or crown, especially if an opponent’s partial contact would compromise that man’s balance or defensive positioning. (Later Chocolatito would leave his hook high and extended in an opponent’s chest-shoulder crook to reduce the other man’s leverage via range and impetus via jarring – as the opponent’s right shoulder invariably drove into his own face Chocolatito’s left glove.)

What Chocolatito learned against Rooster Estrada, though, were the perils of his casual approach against a man larger than him and necessarily accustomed to contact from men larger than Chocolatito, too. After throwing nary a punch in the opening 2 1/2 minutes of their tilt Chocolatito peppered Estrada with a left hook and a right cross that offered the Mexican a taste of the Nicaraguan’s punch but where previous opponents retreated hastily from such a sample The Rooster didn’t mind it enough to relent, or very much at all. TV Azteca’s commentating crew that included a legend named Chavez and a genius named Barrera performed ably its role of Mexican partisan, of course, and awarded Estrada each of the first four rounds but only a Nicaraguan, or an American judge named Druxman, could argue Chocolatito merited more than one of those opening four “episodios” – as Latin broadcasters call them.

The one early criticism the Mexican broadcasters did have for their countryman told: Where Chocolatito’s footwork was light and efficient, Estrada’s was busy, almost nervous. It was what wasted energy Mexican prizefighters abhor and did abhor openly, noticing Chocolatito took steps to move his opponent while Estrada took steps to settle himself. But it was a tiny detail till the later rounds when both men whacked one another and both men considered taking backwards steps and both men told themselves not to, and Estrada did anyway a few more times than Chocolatito. The decision got read unanimously in Chocolatito’s favor, then the feasting began.

Six months later Chocolatito nearly lost the diminutive “ito” from his nickname and became Chocolatón by gaining 8 1/4 pounds for a homecoming match with unheralded Colombian flyweight Ronald Barrera whom Gonzalez stopped quickly and looked pretty good while he did.

Four months after that and about four pounds lighter, once more in Managua, Chocolatito looked bad against an inexperienced Mexican flyweight named Francisco Rodriguez Jr. who was too inexperienced to know how pure and perfect his opponent was supposed to be and didn’t fight like he was against a talent rarefied as Chocolatito’s. Rodriguez saw a soft man in front of him struggling with balance and being surprised by that struggle with balance and punched Chocolatito a whole lot more than experience and competition anticipated he should. Chocolatito outweighed himself and when his left-hook leads missed he folded over his front knee like he hadn’t before. Class told eventually and Gonzalez’d’ve ground Rodriguez to his component parts but not nearly soon as the official line – Gonzalez TKO 7 – indicates: Nicaraguan referee Onofre Ramirez’s stoppage was so premature the voice of Nicaraguan boxing chanted “¡Se lo precipitó! ¡Se lo precipitó! ¡Se lo precipitó! (He rushed it!)”

Fairly and undoubtedly dubious about Gonzalez’s hometown preparatory rituals Chocolatito’s promoter Teiken wisely returned him to Japan and a journeyman opponent, Mexican Oscar Blanquet, for Gonzalez’s final match of 2013, a year after the Gallo Estrada ordeal. Against an opponent on a two-fight losing streak Gonzalez looked grimly determined but returned to form of a sort in walking through Blanquet before four minutes were up – but grim for the first time. At the match’s end Gonzalez was dignified, not joyful. Happiness had left his eyes but so had sluggishness left his legs, and Chocolatito was almost grown sufficiently into a flyweight’s body to challenge for a world title in a third weightclass.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

By Bart Barry-

Round the time of Roman Gonzalez’s 28th prizefight – a March 19, 2011 decision defense of his second world title in a light flyweight beating of Mexican Manuel “El Chango” Vargas in Mexico – Chocolatito picked up a modifier suddenly persistent in use by comentaristas whether Nicaraguan or Mexican: Elegante.

How apt.

Chocolatito’s physique, the wingspan and unobstructive chest complemented by shoulders fit for a 150-pound man on any downtown sidewalk in North America and tapered midsection set on powerful legs all supporting a noticeably handsome face on a head whose top did not gain the uppermost rope of every ringpost, made one consider he might be special before his athleticism proved it, his long arms never improperly stretched out their centered frame.

To see Gonzalez advance on an opponent in his slight crouch both legs bent, a line of symmetry crotch to lowered chin, brings the quintessence of every hope every trainer has ever for every charge his first day in the gym when told to put his left fist forward with his left foot – no, not your right; no, it doesn’t matter what’s comfortable; no, no, I don’t care how your cousin showed you; yes exactly, because you’re right handed; no, no, not . . . get your hands up; listen kid, you’re not gonna come in here and reinvent boxing – and makes that trainer smile like he forgot he could at our beloved sport so badly stained by a halfdecade’s waiting for Mayweather-Pacquiao. It’s that sensation more than others one feels when he sees the opening rounds of Gonzalez’s match with El Chango Vargas: “Finally, someone I can tell others to watch, this, the little guy in the blue and white, you see that? it’s perfect, it’s exactly how you’re supposed to do it.”

Too much later got made of Gonzalez’s temperament outside the ring his religiosity and philanthropy and general goodness because too much is always made of everything in America’s vending of athletes – a pathological greed tells us to tell others one can have it all and be all to every and be meaningful to meaningless people if their lives’ meaning might temporarily be derived from buying our product which is such a bargain we’re practically giving it away – but the Nicaraguans saw it at once as one of their own and the Mexicans saw it soon as Gonzalez began dashing their best little men. Gonzalez’s temperament was unusual for a man who made his living concussing other men depicting no malice no rage nothing to imbalance while stopping never to admire his craftsmanship or effect just continuing to twirl his hips and whirl his fists sans intent of any kind till there was the other man’s face, behold! a bloody lumpen mess.

Twenty months by then passed since the violent death of Chocolatito’s mentor, Alexis Arguello known uniquely simply as “Alexi” in Nicaraguan broadcasts, by Arguello’s own hand or someone else’s and those who suspected someone else’s suspected nothing so ghoulish might be done Nicaragua’s greatest ambassador without consent from President Daniel Ortega, running for reelection in 2011. Whether by personal passion or health insurance for his family Chocolatito went in the ring wearing a white cotton “I (heart) Sandinista National Liberation Front” t-shirt each match of that campaign season – setting American viewers of a certain age to wonder whatever did happen to those Contras and Iranians and Ollie North?

Chocolatito elevated his opponents even while he razed them and then toweled a red gash over one eye (Omar Salado) or helped lift the ruined to his stool (Omar Soto) after framing an act of ceaseless heroism for El Chango Vargas in the Mexican state of Puebla, once more at 7,000 feet higher altitude than Gonzalez’s native Managua and it told, as the Mexican’s jaw looked surely broken in round two but he didn’t relent for a halfhour more and didn’t take an iota’s fraction off a single punch he thrust at Chocolatito in a barely noted show of valor so extreme Hollywood’d make 90 minutes and a love story of it, were Vargas an American heavyweight. Instead it was a 108-pound Nicaraguan versus a 108-pound Mexican in San Pedro Cholula and both men, “Little Chocolate” Gonzalez and “Monkey” Vargas, wore the same classic-red Reyes gloves and did ringwalks to each other’s music and caredn’t a whit for what pomposity happened in American ringwalks and ringwear that same year.

Even Chocolatito’s American debut was unfrilled in the fall when after brutalizing and decisioning the Mexican Vargas in Mexico and brutalizing plainly the Mexican Salado in Mexico Chocolatito iced the overweight Mexican Soto in Las Vegas on a night that deservedly belonged to an Argentine middleweight in Atlantic City broadcasted by HBO, the American cable network that recently and fortunately decided to make a promotional celebration of Gonzalez. Fighting on a Top Rank card for Teiken Promotions Chocolatito went in deep and savage with “El Lobito” Soto who barely made flyweight for his junior-flyweight scrap in which Gonzalez proved himself right formidable at the next weightclass when he alpenhorned Soto to the blue mat with a left uppercut that made “The Little Wolf” submissive.

That year Nicaragua again ratified the Sandinistas with Comandante Daniel’s reelection and Gonzalez boxed Vargas gorgeously, spun Salado expertly, stretched Soto frighteningly – while Floyd suckered Vicious Vic, and Manny sparred Shane and robbed Juan Manuel.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

By Bart Barry-

On Sept. 15, 2008, Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez defeated Japanese minimumweight world champion Yutaka Niida in Kanagawa, Japan, bringing Gonzalez’s first world title and Niida’s retirement. Whatever Niida expected in his eighth title defense did not include a career-ending fourth-round TKO in his hometown, right eye shut by Gonzalez left hooks and nose bleeding from all of it. What no one in attendance either expected was the pronounced disparity in size Gonzalez enjoyed; not all minimumweights are stitched from the same bolt, and as Gonzalez began to wing left-heavy combinations Niida’s reactions illustrated the physical disparity between the men – along with boxing’s standard optical illusion of the beater growing larger while the beaten shrinks quickly.

On the Nicaraguan telecast that evening was the late Alexis Arguello who praised Gonzalez’s tranquility above his other virtues and broke a selfimposed code of journalistic objectivity only after the match was stopped, whooping at his microphone “¡Viva Nicaragua!”

If winning a world title did not immediately improve Gonzalez by 20-percent, as lore says it should, his opponents didn’t know it and prepared for a fifth-better Gonzalez, especially Mexican Francisco Rosas who stood as Chocolatito’s first title challenger in a corner of Auditorio Guelaguetza five months later and at 105 pounds positioned beside a quite leggy Corona girl appeared more smurf than mature prizefighter. Like his country’s diminutive comedic genius Jose Rene Ruiz Martinez, beloved and feared as Tun Tun, Rosas took others’ opinions of his stature and turned himself spiteful over it. With none of Chocolatito’s handsomeness or charisma or physique – Rosas’ fatless midsection was broad as his arms were short – the Mexican brought a champion’s tally of spite with him in the ring and upon finding a subpar Gonzalez converted the match from athleticism to attrition and almost succeeded too.

Gonzalez’s first title defense was either a lesson in the economics of prizefighting or something worse and was not in Nicaragua but Mexico – Oaxaca, specifically, 5,000 feet higher than Chocolatito’s native Managua – and the difference told when Gonzalez’s mouth opened early and stayed that way. Chocolatito fought once in Nicaragua between his winning the title and defending it, but both the expectations and consequences were considerably lesser for that tilt than his Oaxaca match against a Oaxaqeño, and that was before food poisoning. Mexican altitude requires adjustment but its want of food inspectors requires much more, and while Chocolatito’s conditioning and craft might’ve overcome the altitudinal difference his inexperience with the Mexican craft of masking lost fish with spices served him well as a tourist should expect.

“I believe I outdid myself,” Gonzalez told La Prensa after his victory by split decision. “In the morning I ate eggs with beans, and at midday fish with potatoes and avocado. I don’t know, but I believe that food is what sent me to the toilet.

“Before the fight I emptied myself of the food, but just the same it gave me a strong pain. I had much fear because I felt I might soil myself in the fight.”

The diarrhea stilled for those 48 minutes but Gonzalez’s stomach did not, and he vomited in his corner between rounds and spit nausea’s salty offense off his tongue often as corner time allowed but showed naught to Rosas, and had the Mexican even a fractional inventory the champion’s maladies he’d have fought more fiercely than he did, even fiercely as he did, and he might well’ve stopped Chocolatito a halfdecade before Americans knew the Nicaraguan’s name.

Rabbited often and crumpled against a neutral turnbuckle while Rosas’ gumshield got replaced midway through their 12th round Gonzalez looked the picture of an underprepared athlete, one who mistook his attainment of a world title as an arrival at predestined showcases, but this was before the PBC: Gonzalez won his world title in a disappearing time when such an achievement marked a fighter more like a target than a corporate asset and Chocolatito knew it already and expected opponents to transcend themselves as Rosas did. Gonzalez was not the master Mexicans expected to take apart their man even as they swore they didn’t that night in Oaxaca but neither was he a lesson in the perils of illpreparation, contrary to Nicaraguan suspicions well-voiced by Enrique Armas, comentarista extraordinaria, imploring Gonzalez to remember his faith and country and raise himself higher than his obviously poor training camp prepared him to do.

Had Arguello been ringside with Armas that night he might’ve defended his prodigy protege but “El Flaco Explosivo” had demons of his own haunting him, and those demons may have been his countrymen, and Nicargua’s gentleman champion and sportsman ambassador would be dead of a gunshot to his chest in five months.

Tagged repeatedly by Rosas rights in the final rounds of his first defense Gonzalez ceded the bluemat uncharacteristically and wore an unlikely but appropriate look of apprehension while Mexican officials slowtallied their split-decision scorecards afterwards – a robbery narrowly averted, according to Armas, a robbery to shame Mexico for the ages. Gonzalez was gracious in victory but honest, too, speaking openly about his food poisoning and saying he would grant Rosas a rematch but not in Mexico. Mexican fans heard that as a concession to their man’s superiority of grit and execution and accused Gonzalez of inventing pretexts for his poor showing in Oaxaca.

Twenty months later Rosas got his rematch, this time in Japan, and Gonzalez was returned to Gonzalez, not his Oaxacan imposter, and Chocolatito belligerently dropped the Mexican thrice in round 2 and ended the rematch in its fifth minute – vindicated.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, Roman Gonzalez will drop his flyweight titles and remain at super flyweight after capturing the WBC super flyweight title against Carlos Cuadras on September 10th.

“He treasures this (flyweight) title very much, but is excited another boxer with his same dream will have a chance to become a WBC world champion and that feeling overwhelms him,” Carlos Blandon, Gonzalez’s manager, told ESPN.com.

To fill the flyweight vacancy, the WBC has ordered its two top-rated contenders to meet: Nawaphon Sor Rungvisai (36-0, 28 KOs), 25, of Thailand, and Juan “Churritos” Hernandez Navarrete (33-2, 24 KOs), 29, of Mexico. If their camps do not make a deal for the fight, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman announced that a purse bid would be scheduled to take place Oct. 21 at the offices of the sanctioning organization in Mexico City.

 

 

By Bart Barry-

As 2016 approaches its final quarter still enjoying a fine chance at being remembered like the worst year for boxing in the 21st century there is little reason to pile on since we already all know the culprits and hopelessness of our current state. There is even less reason to begin a monthlong countdown to our sport’s one superfight of the year. Better then to assume so few of us accessed foreign broadcasts of Nicaraguan master Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez’s early career that visiting them will prove fruitful while knowing even if it doesn’t a late-arriving effort to celebrate Gonzalez brings more pleasure than available alternatives do.

On Jan. 14, 2008, Chocolatito (16-0, 16 KOs) matched himself with Japanese light flyweight Hiroshi Matsumoto (17-7-4, 8 KOs) at Bunka Gym in Kanagawa, Japan. Gonzalez wore royalblue satin trunks with “Visit Nicaragua” on their seat, either in the hopes an English-speaking audience uncertain what to do with “Visita” might be watching or, just as likely, Japanese aficionados in attendance would fault no one from America who did not inscribe his country’s name in kanji or hiragana or katakana, and would be literate enough in English to appreciate the goodfaith effort of the Nicaraguan Chamber of Commerce or whomever.

While it is impossible for a fighter to turn pro fully formed it is nearly as inconceivable a fighter who wasn’t fully formed learned enough in his career’s opening 16 prizefights to be perfect as Gonzalez was in his 17th had he not come into prizefighting fully formed. In the first month of 2008 Gonzalez bore a remarkable resemblance to the fighter he was earlier this month, 30 prizefights later. His match with Matsumoto was noteworthy for being Gonzalez’s second appearance outside Nicaragua (also his second appearance in Japan) and for being the first match of Gonzalez’s th’t Chocolatito did not win by knockout. Matsumoto’s finishing upright was attributable to Matsumoto’s selfknowledge more than any shortcoming of Chocolatito’s.

What strikes first the viewer is Gonzalez’s detachment from the act of bludgeoning another man – in this Gonzalez is most notably Central American, not Mexican; he has Dinamita Marquez’s efficiency with none of the Mexican’s contempt for an opponent. Which brings the most delicious juxtaposition found in a Gonzalez match: He is calibrated perfectly to an opponent he seems to regard dispassionately as a target, not a man. How, one wonders, can Gonzalez capture so quickly and ably another man’s physicality without hating him or loving him or envying him or pitying him? Here he resembles his mentor, Alexis Arguello, about whom it was often said Arguello did not find other men’s weaknesses and exploit them so much as he found other men’s strengths and did those things better too – if you made your living with a 1-2 Arguello gave you jab-cross better than you’d ever given it; if other men feared your bodypunching Arguello was your man for that as well.

As Chocolatito has added weight to his tiny frame he has become admired for his incredible activity and stamina, but watch him against a career volume puncher like Matsumoto, a southpaw to boot, and see the ease of Gonzalez’s adaptation – how comfortably he waits for Matsumoto’s aggressiveness to undo itself by sending the Japanese’s weight tumbling over his front knee (Volume Puncher City, as it were) and landing himself on Gonzalez’s uppercuts, a disproportionate number of which the Nicaraguan fired in their match’s first five rounds.

Like most volume punchers Matsumoto hadn’t a backup plan because volume punchers generally don’t; contrary to others’ misperceptions of them, volume punchers are intelligent men who find the one fighting style that complements their talents and dispositions well enough to make their livings as professional athletes, gainful employments that surprise former coaches and trainers who told them they were too slow or fat or small for the better athletes they later disarm and unman.

Matsumoto was pure volume puncher in the sense his absence of discouragement was a tool for discomfiting more gifted opponents much as his fists. You struck him and struck him and calculus told you he would break, and when he didn’t and didn’t and didn’t it began to worry you. But it didn’t worry Chocolatito. His offensive purity, the perfection of his technique, left in him as much or more volume and activity as Matsumoto and thrice the accuracy.

Gonzalez neither took a wrong step nor allowed one from Matsumoto in Chocololatito’s ongoing pursuit of perpetual motion, the elusive machinery the very best teachers try to instill in students and rarely do: pulling the left shoulder, extended by the jab, powers the cross that extends the right shoulder whose return snaps the left hook that cocks the right uppercut and so on, all fired by the hips that turn and plant the driving feet. Many of us get told “the best combination has no end” but Chocolatito somehow absorbed it well enough to inform his every motion – even in the molten madness of combat’s crucible – till the fiber of who he is as a professional athlete became inseparable from it.

There is nothing not discouraging about being struck hard and often in the face by a man who knows how, but Matsumoto’s reaction to finishing his career’s 24th match in an upright position evinced something otherwise and deeper: the elation of a man condemned to die and pardoned.

And while the unanimous and lopsided decision got read in his opponent’s native language Chocolatito stood poised in his unmarked face evincing nothing so much as detachment.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry