Roman Gonzalez might be pricing himself out of an intriguing matchup with Juan Francisco Estrada.
Gonzalez is asking for $1 million for the fight even amid the coronavirus pandemic, which precludes the possibility of live audiences for the time being. And DAZN, which has deals with both fighters, reportedly is suffering financially.
Fernando Beltran, who promotes Estrada, says Gonzalez’s demand leads him to believe he doesn’t really want to fight his rival again.
“Sometimes it’s easier to say that [he wants an unrealistic payday] than saying that he doesn’t want the fight,” Beltran told ESPN Deportes. “And maybe he forgets the summary of his career in his last five fights.
“We as promoters want to give the public what they want and we take care of the economic conditions of our fighter. The priority here is to say that we are ready, the negotiations will come later.”
Gonzalez (49-2, 41 KOs) and Estrada (40-3, 27 KOs) fought in November 2012, with Gonzalez winning a unanimous decision in a competitive fight. A lot has changed since then.
Some figured Gonzalez, a four-division titleholder and former pound-for-pound king, was finished as an elite fighter when he lost back-to-back fights to Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in 2017, the second time by a brutal fourth-round knockout.
However, he rebounded to win three consecutive fights, the last an impressive ninth-round stoppage of then-unbeaten Kal Yafai on Feb. 29.
Meanwhile, Estrada, a two-division champion, has climbed onto some pound-for-pound lists. He’s 14-1 since the Gonzalez fight and avenged his only defeat during that stretch by outpointing Sor Rungvisai in April of last year.