By: Sean Crose
Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez seems to have ended his career. After a controversial loss to the immensely talented Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in March 2017, the legendary Nicaraguan fourth division champion was eliminated in a rematch less than six months later. However, Chocolatito is finally back, winning four in a row over two years, three by knockout, and claiming the WBC and WBA super flyweight titles in the process. The stage was set for a rematch with Juan Francisco Estrada, whom Chocolatito bested with a unanimous decision in 2012. This time, thanks to a controversial split verdict from the umpires, Estrada is the winner. .
And now, on March 5, the two will meet again. “Super active,” 34-year-old Chocolatito told Fighthype in an interview published Tuesday. “Very, very motivating.” He has good reason to be. Many felt that he had actually won two battles with Estrada and that the second battle resulted in an unfair decision. “He was just really focused,” said Chocolatito’s interpreter. “He’s working hard just like any other camp.”
In fact, the highly-anticipated third bout between the two decorated boxers was supposed to end in October. As usual in recent years, however, Covid got in the way, this time by infected Chocolatito, and caused the duel to be postponed. Now that the war seemed to be coming true once again, Chocolatito wanted to get ready. According to his translator, even though he was training until vacation, “he went back to Nicaragua to continue his training camp.” However, now the boxer has returned to the state of preparing for the rubber match.
It’s wise that Chocolatito has definitely stayed in shape, as his second showdown with Estrada was a great one, the conclusion debatable or not. “Position wise it’s still in the air,” he said of where the third game will be. When asked how he feels about the return of Leo Santa Cruz this March, Chocolatito offered words that can be applied to every fighter. “Anything can happen in boxing,” he said.
