Roman Gonzalez Set For ‘Historic’ Homecoming As Bid Begins To Become Five-Weight Champion
Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez says he’s excited to fight in his home country of Nicaragua for the first time in nine years as the boxing legend begins his audacious attempt to win a world title in a fifth division.
Gonzalez (51-4-0 41 KO) takes on Colombia’s Rober Barrera (27-5-0 17 KO) at the Polideportivo Alexis Arguello in Managua on Friday evening in his first bout in his hometown since 2015.
Even at the age of 37 and more than 18 months after his last fight – a thrilling majority points defeat to Juan Francisco Estrada for the vacant WBC super-flyweight title – Gonzalez continues to break new ground. Friday’s bout will be his first at bantamweight and a victory will set him on the path, he hopes, to becoming a six-time, five-weight world champion.
“I’m feeling motivated and happy to finally return home,” Chocolatito, who has won world titles at minimumweight, light-flyweight, flyweight, and super flyweight, told Boxing News. “This is a historic fight after so much time without me fighting in my own country. It is hard because planning a boxing event in Nicaragua is something really complicated, because it costs a lot of money.
Gonzalez Sets Sights On Five-Weight Glory
“I hope to give the people of Nicaragua an excellent fight. I’m so happy because all the families in Nicaragua can see me fight again. Most of the people in Nicaragua don’t have the opportunity to see me live.”
Gonzalez’s return to the ring comes after his second defeat to Estrada in his past three fights. Given his age and all he’s accomplished, many believed it was the opportune time for the Nicaraguan to hang up his gloves.
However, Gonzalez has other plans and is aiming to further burnish a career that is already destined for the Hall of Fame. In his sights are the four bantamweight world champions: Yoshiki Takei (WBO), Ryosuke Nishida (IBF), Junto Nakatani (WBC), and Takuma Inoue. He is therefore aiming to break the Japanese stranglehold on the 118lbs division.
“I’m anxious to get back in the ring. This will be a big comeback in my career,” he said. “I wish to get a new title in a different weight class, at 118lbs. I want to finish my career with a very nice trajectory. In my last fights I’m going to give the best that I can give. When the bell rings I’m just gonna go out there and do my job.”
Chocolatito ‘Filled With Pride’
A return to fight in Nicaragua’s capital – also his hometown – has given Gonzalez the chance to reflect; on where he has come from and where his boxing journey has taken him. Once regarded as arguably the best fighter on the planet in his prime, and 19 years after his debut he is still operating at the top level, Chocolatito has come a long way.
Introduced to boxing at a young age by his father, Gonzalez’s obsession to become professional and provide for his struggling family became his only focus. The hard work and sacrifice more than paid off, and now he’s ready to give even more back to his people.
“I believe that the person who doesn’t have anything is the one that struggles the most and can achieve something. When people don’t have too much is when they go forward and they shine,” Gonzalez said. “It’s been a big journey for me. Being born in Nicaragua in a humble and low-income environment made me mature professionally at an early age to help my family.
“It made me responsible and gave me a lot of motivation to be able to help my family move forward. It helped me a lot, not only to be Nicaraguan but also to come from a family with a lot of history in the world of boxing in Nicaragua. It fills me with pride to be able to represent my country and motivate the youth of the world to dedicate themselves to a sport and not fall into vices at an early age.”
