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Former #1 pound-for-pound fighter Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez looks to redeem himself against the only fighter to beat him. The Nicaraguan boxer faces current junior bantamweight world champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in a rematch on September 9th, 2017 at the StubHub center in Carson, California.
Controversial Loss
Chocolatito was the toast of the boxing world when he ran into the rugged (perhaps dirty) Srisaket Sor Rungvisai. Gonzalez had won world titles in four different weight classes and he was blowing by every opponent he faced. But after 46 wins (38 of them by knockout) Gonzalez was beaten in a close Fight of the Year contender which many thought he won.
Rungvisai won the fight by majority decision despite being out-landed in the 12-round affair. Chocolatito was also the more accurate fighter in that fight but the fact that he was bloodied after several uncalled headbutts by the Thai fighter made it appear that Rungvisai was doing more damage. Six months later, the two meet each other again in a rematch.
Odds
Rungvisai was a +1000 underdog against a very high -2000 favorite in Gonzalez. Despite the upset, it was Chocolatito who landed over 150 more punches than Rungvisai and was 14% more accurate than the Thai fighter. Gonzalez also overcame several headbutts to be the busier fighter in that fight. Despite the numbers, the judges inexplicably gave the decision to Rungvisai.
It’s hard to believe that lightning is going to strike twice for Roman Gonzalez. He is simply the better fighter than Rungvisai in all aspects of the game except perhaps in the headbutt department. All Chocolatito has to do is avoid getting headbutted and rough-housed by the dirty tactics of the fighter from Thailand. He just has to keep his poise and let his supreme boxing skills do the job for him. Gonzalez is just too good not to win this time around.
Prediction
Rungvisai is tough, aggressive and packs a mean punch but he is not Roman Gonzalez. He stood toe to toe with Chocolatito but he got plenty of help from the headbutts and the judges as well. Sorry to say this but Chocolatito was robbed in that first fight.
He won’t be robbed again. He already knows what to expect from his opponent and if there is going to be a knockout in this contest, it will be in favor of Chocolatito. We’re picking Gonzalez to win by wide decision or by knockout. It’s a cute saying but lightning doesn’t strike twice on the same person.
