Tag: Chocolatito

Juan Francisco Estrada survived a rally from rival Roman Gonzalez to win a majority decision and the vacant WBC 115-pound title in their third fight Saturday in Glendale, Arizona.

Two judges had Estrada winning, 116-112 and 115-113. The third had it even, 114-114.

Estrada (44-3, 28 KOs) got off to a strong start, outboxing and outworking Chocolatito in the first half of the fight and seemed to be on his way to clear decision.

However, Gonzalez (51-4, 41 KOs) fought with more urgency beginning around Round 6, attacking Estrada with abandon and landing many eye-catching shots from then on.

The fight seemed to be in the balance going into the final round, which Estrada appeared to win.

Estrada and Gonzalez had split two earlier fights.

You can read a full report here.

ROUND 12

Great final round. Both men fought with urgency, as if the result of the fight was in the balance. And it might’ve been. Estrada had his best round since the middle of the fight. He probably edged it because of his activity. Who do you think won the fight?

ROUND 11

Estrada did a little better than round, picking his pace. He stood his ground more and let his hands fly. However, Gonzalez is still the one plowing forward, swarming Estrada with punches. It would’ve been difficult to give Estrada that round.

ROUND 10

Same story. Gonzalez is in control. Now he’s consistently busier than Estrada, he’s the one landing more hard, accurate combinations, he’s the one beating his opponent to the punch. The question seems to be: Did Gonzalez dig himself too big of a hole early in the fight?

ROUND 9

The fight is competitive but it’s Gonzalez now who’s outworking Estrada. He looks a lot like the Chocolatito we’ve seen over the years, a relentlessly aggressive puncher. Estrada is holding his own but it’s getting harder and harder for him.

ROUND 8

Chocolatito’s best round? Gonzalez just marched forward and imposed his will on Estrada that round, landing some punishing blows even as Estrada tried to backpedal out of the way. Estrada had some good moments but it was Gonzalez’s round.

ROUND 7

Competitive, back-and-forth round. Both men landed clean, eye-catching combinations. Estrada seems to be more accurate with his shots overall, though. And the Mexican might’ve been a little busier.

ROUND 6

Something seems to be missing from Gonzalez, who can’t keep up with the younger Estrada. Once again, he pushed the action at times, fought with urgency. But he’s not getting that much done. He’s still being outboxed.

ROUND 5

Good round for Estrada, who is outboxing and outworking Gonzalez and just beating him to the punch most of the time. Again, Chocolatito had some good moments but it’s not enough to win rounds.

ROUND 4

Another fun round. Estrada is boxing well, landing hard combinations and not taking too many shots. However, Chocolatito is still landing some eye-catching shots, which is keeping the fight comepetitive.

ROUND 3

Great round. Gonzalez began to fight with some urgency, pushing the action and letting his hands go. Estrada boxed well — countering when Gonzale attacked — but he suddenly had to contend with a beast. They had a wild exchange at the end of the round.

ROUND 2

Estrada is outboxing and outworking Gonzalez at the moment. The Mexican is busy, landing some of his punches and using his feet to frustrate his Nicaraguan opponent at this point.

ROUND 1

Neither guy let loose in the opening round. Estrada was a little busier, particularly with his jab. That probably won him the round. Call it a feel-out round.

***

Julio Cesar Martinez defeated Samuel Carmona by a majority decision to retain his flyweight title. Two judges scored it for the champion, 117-111 and 116-112. The third judge had it even, 114-114.

Carmona (8-1, 4 KOs) got off to a strong start, sticking and moving his way to an early lead on the cards. However, the 2016 Olympian, who fights from an orthodox stance, evidently injured his right hand around the fourth or fifth round.

He then became a one-handed fighter who ran more than he fought, which opened the door for Martinez (19-2, 14 KOs) to take control of the strange fight. Martinez had trouble landing punches against the elusive Spaniard the entire fight but did more than his opponent in the second half.

Carmona decided to stand his ground a bit more down the stretch, which resulted in competitive rounds. However, he evidently lost too much ground in the middle of the fight.

Martinez was making the fifth defense of the WBC belt.

***

Juan Francisco Estrada and Roman Gonzalez are scheduled to meet for a vacant 115-pound title Saturday in Glendale, Arizona, the third time they will have fought one another.

The main portion of the show begins at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. The main event will take place later in the broadcast.

Boxing Junkie will post results of the main event and other featured bouts immediately afterward. Simply return to this post and refresh when the time comes.

Full coverage – a fight story, photo gallery and analysis – will follow on separate posts the night of the fight and the following day.

Enjoy the fights!

[lawrence-related id=34437,34421,34374]

Juan Francisco Estrada survived a rally from rival Roman Gonzalez to win a majority decision and the vacant WBC 115-pound title in their third fight Saturday in Glendale, Arizona.

Two judges had Estrada winning, 116-112 and 115-113. The third had it even, 114-114.

Estrada (44-3, 28 KOs) got off to a strong start, outboxing and outworking Chocolatito in the first half of the fight and seemed to be on his way to clear decision.

However, Gonzalez (51-4, 41 KOs) fought with more urgency beginning around Round 6, attacking Estrada with abandon and landing many eye-catching shots from then on.

The fight seemed to be in the balance going into the final round, which Estrada appeared to win.

Estrada and Gonzalez had split two earlier fights.

You can read a full report here.

ROUND 12

Great final round. Both men fought with urgency, as if the result of the fight was in the balance. And it might’ve been. Estrada had his best round since the middle of the fight. He probably edged it because of his activity. Who do you think won the fight?

ROUND 11

Estrada did a little better than round, picking his pace. He stood his ground more and let his hands fly. However, Gonzalez is still the one plowing forward, swarming Estrada with punches. It would’ve been difficult to give Estrada that round.

ROUND 10

Same story. Gonzalez is in control. Now he’s consistently busier than Estrada, he’s the one landing more hard, accurate combinations, he’s the one beating his opponent to the punch. The question seems to be: Did Gonzalez dig himself too big of a hole early in the fight?

ROUND 9

The fight is competitive but it’s Gonzalez now who’s outworking Estrada. He looks a lot like the Chocolatito we’ve seen over the years, a relentlessly aggressive puncher. Estrada is holding his own but it’s getting harder and harder for him.

ROUND 8

Chocolatito’s best round? Gonzalez just marched forward and imposed his will on Estrada that round, landing some punishing blows even as Estrada tried to backpedal out of the way. Estrada had some good moments but it was Gonzalez’s round.

ROUND 7

Competitive, back-and-forth round. Both men landed clean, eye-catching combinations. Estrada seems to be more accurate with his shots overall, though. And the Mexican might’ve been a little busier.

ROUND 6

Something seems to be missing from Gonzalez, who can’t keep up with the younger Estrada. Once again, he pushed the action at times, fought with urgency. But he’s not getting that much done. He’s still being outboxed.

ROUND 5

Good round for Estrada, who is outboxing and outworking Gonzalez and just beating him to the punch most of the time. Again, Chocolatito had some good moments but it’s not enough to win rounds.

ROUND 4

Another fun round. Estrada is boxing well, landing hard combinations and not taking too many shots. However, Chocolatito is still landing some eye-catching shots, which is keeping the fight comepetitive.

ROUND 3

Great round. Gonzalez began to fight with some urgency, pushing the action and letting his hands go. Estrada boxed well — countering when Gonzale attacked — but he suddenly had to contend with a beast. They had a wild exchange at the end of the round.

ROUND 2

Estrada is outboxing and outworking Gonzalez at the moment. The Mexican is busy, landing some of his punches and using his feet to frustrate his Nicaraguan opponent at this point.

ROUND 1

Neither guy let loose in the opening round. Estrada was a little busier, particularly with his jab. That probably won him the round. Call it a feel-out round.

***

Julio Cesar Martinez defeated Samuel Carmona by a majority decision to retain his flyweight title. Two judges scored it for the champion, 117-111 and 116-112. The third judge had it even, 114-114.

Carmona (8-1, 4 KOs) got off to a strong start, sticking and moving his way to an early lead on the cards. However, the 2016 Olympian, who fights from an orthodox stance, evidently injured his right hand around the fourth or fifth round.

He then became a one-handed fighter who ran more than he fought, which opened the door for Martinez (19-2, 14 KOs) to take control of the strange fight. Martinez had trouble landing punches against the elusive Spaniard the entire fight but did more than his opponent in the second half.

Carmona decided to stand his ground a bit more down the stretch, which resulted in competitive rounds. However, he evidently lost too much ground in the middle of the fight.

Martinez was making the fifth defense of the WBC belt.

***

Juan Francisco Estrada and Roman Gonzalez are scheduled to meet for a vacant 115-pound title Saturday in Glendale, Arizona, the third time they will have fought one another.

The main portion of the show begins at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. The main event will take place later in the broadcast.

Boxing Junkie will post results of the main event and other featured bouts immediately afterward. Simply return to this post and refresh when the time comes.

Full coverage – a fight story, photo gallery and analysis – will follow on separate posts the night of the fight and the following day.

Enjoy the fights!

[lawrence-related id=34437,34421,34374]

Everything Roman Gonzalez accomplishes from here on out is gravy.

“Chocolatito,” 35, has built a Hall of Fame career over 17 years, not in one, but two unforgettable acts, the second of which continues in a third fight with arch rival Juan Francisco Estrada on Saturday night in Glendale, Arizona (DAZN).

In Act 1, the Nicaraguan used a combination of ability, work rate and knockout power to win titles in four divisions, climb to No. 1 on many pound-for-pound lists and make a strong case that he’s an all-time great.

Then he ran into trouble in the name of equally powerful Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, who stunned the boxing world by defeating Gonzalez in back-to-back fights in 2017 – the second time by a brutal fourth-round knockout.

It seemed as if the then-30-year-old was finished as an elite fighter. However, the reason for his sudden decline evidently had little to do with advancing age.

Gonzalez lost his career-long trainer and father figure Arnulfo Obando in November 2016, when Obando died shortly after suffering a stroke. Gonzalez was devastated by the loss, which left him ill-prepared to fight at a high level.

That changed in time. He got back into the ring a year after the second setback against Sor Rungvisai and proceeded to knock out three consecutive opponents, the last victory being a ninth-round stoppage of then 115-pound champion Khalid Yafai in February 2020 that catapulted him back onto pound-for-pound lists.

Decline? What decline? Act 2 had begun, with some help.

“The fans have witnessed the great things that have gradually happened. Ultimately God decides those things in our lives,” he said.

“Chocolatito” didn’t slow down after the Yafai victory, easily outpointing Israel Gonzalez to set up a rematch with a familiar opponent.

He had outpointed a young Estrada in defense of his 108-pound title near the peak of his powers in 2012, although the Mexican pushed him as hard as anyone before him to score points in the realm of public opinion even though he lost.

Estrada finally had a chance to avenge the setback in March of last year. It was a classic brawl, Estrada emerging with a disputed split-decision victory in a title-unification bout. Gonzalez rebounded by stopping hot 112-pound champ Julio Cesar Martinez in March, which leads us to this Saturday.

Gonzalez is confident he’ll win the rubber match. He also believes the fight will live up the standards of the first two meetings.

“We know it’s going to be a great fight, a war for the fans,” he said. “But we have faith in God that we’re going to come out victorious. We’ve worked well in our training camp. You’ll see this on Saturday. My physical condition has been very good.

“And I know it will be a beautiful fight for the fans. We’ve shown that the lighter weights have qualities that fans like to see. I get the feeling this third fight will be legendary too and many people will remember this great fight like the first and the second.

“The last two fights captured the hearts of the fans so the third will be a tremendous fight. It could be the best one.”

Gonzalez can’t go on forever, can he?

Most little fighters have moved on by the time they reach their mid-30s, when genuine decline has normally begun to set in. Gonzalez acknowledges that there isn’t likely to be an Act 3 at this stage of the game.

He said he plans to stick around as long as he still enjoys the process. And he’s loving it at the moment.

“It’s difficult to stop doing something that you like, you know?” he said. “God has blessed me so much in my life. I’ve been given pretty much everything, I know that we’re coming to a stage where it might be time to hang them up, but we always ask God for time.

“The most important thing is to enjoy the moment. And right now, I’m enjoying myself because you’ll never get these moments back so, I’m enjoying it. I’m loving it because I feel that God has given me such a great gift, you know?

Yes, we know.

[lawrence-related id=34345,28671,28600,18601]

Everything Roman Gonzalez accomplishes from here on out is gravy.

“Chocolatito,” 35, has built a Hall of Fame career over 17 years, not in one, but two unforgettable acts, the second of which continues in a third fight with arch rival Juan Francisco Estrada on Saturday night in Glendale, Arizona (DAZN).

In Act 1, the Nicaraguan used a combination of ability, work rate and knockout power to win titles in four divisions, climb to No. 1 on many pound-for-pound lists and make a strong case that he’s an all-time great.

Then he ran into trouble in the name of equally powerful Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, who stunned the boxing world by defeating Gonzalez in back-to-back fights in 2017 – the second time by a brutal fourth-round knockout.

It seemed as if the then-30-year-old was finished as an elite fighter. However, the reason for his sudden decline evidently had little to do with advancing age.

Gonzalez lost his career-long trainer and father figure Arnulfo Obando in November 2016, when Obando died shortly after suffering a stroke. Gonzalez was devastated by the loss, which left him ill-prepared to fight at a high level.

That changed in time. He got back into the ring a year after the second setback against Sor Rungvisai and proceeded to knock out three consecutive opponents, the last victory being a ninth-round stoppage of then 115-pound champion Khalid Yafai in February 2020 that catapulted him back onto pound-for-pound lists.

Decline? What decline? Act 2 had begun, with some help.

“The fans have witnessed the great things that have gradually happened. Ultimately God decides those things in our lives,” he said.

“Chocolatito” didn’t slow down after the Yafai victory, easily outpointing Israel Gonzalez to set up a rematch with a familiar opponent.

He had outpointed a young Estrada in defense of his 108-pound title near the peak of his powers in 2012, although the Mexican pushed him as hard as anyone before him to score points in the realm of public opinion even though he lost.

Estrada finally had a chance to avenge the setback in March of last year. It was a classic brawl, Estrada emerging with a disputed split-decision victory in a title-unification bout. Gonzalez rebounded by stopping hot 112-pound champ Julio Cesar Martinez in March, which leads us to this Saturday.

Gonzalez is confident he’ll win the rubber match. He also believes the fight will live up the standards of the first two meetings.

“We know it’s going to be a great fight, a war for the fans,” he said. “But we have faith in God that we’re going to come out victorious. We’ve worked well in our training camp. You’ll see this on Saturday. My physical condition has been very good.

“And I know it will be a beautiful fight for the fans. We’ve shown that the lighter weights have qualities that fans like to see. I get the feeling this third fight will be legendary too and many people will remember this great fight like the first and the second.

“The last two fights captured the hearts of the fans so the third will be a tremendous fight. It could be the best one.”

Gonzalez can’t go on forever, can he?

Most little fighters have moved on by the time they reach their mid-30s, when genuine decline has normally begun to set in. Gonzalez acknowledges that there isn’t likely to be an Act 3 at this stage of the game.

He said he plans to stick around as long as he still enjoys the process. And he’s loving it at the moment.

“It’s difficult to stop doing something that you like, you know?” he said. “God has blessed me so much in my life. I’ve been given pretty much everything, I know that we’re coming to a stage where it might be time to hang them up, but we always ask God for time.

“The most important thing is to enjoy the moment. And right now, I’m enjoying myself because you’ll never get these moments back so, I’m enjoying it. I’m loving it because I feel that God has given me such a great gift, you know?

Yes, we know.

[lawrence-related id=34345,28671,28600,18601]