Nicaraguanpost.com
Chocolatito: king of the world
For all the doubt about weight, inexperience and being over hyped it took Roman ‘Chocolatito” Gonzalez less than 12 minutes to destroy a champion who many consider to be one of the best ever at the minimum weight.
From the sound of the first bell Gonzalez showed little respect for the six-year reign of the champion Yutaka Niida.
Niida had the keys to the office and Gonzalez was not about to wait around 12 rounds for the judges to decide whether they were changing hands.
From the first bell he hunted his man down with the same precision as when he defeated the highly rated Filipino Ereberto Gejon. Niida had no answer to the punishing double left hooks that have been a trademark of Gonzalez’s meteoric rise through the ranks.
In a little less than four rounds Gonzalez had reduced the Japanese icon to a punching bag. Niida’s face was bloodied, battered and with one eye virtually closed the referee saw no need for the little tiger from Managua to inflict any more pain on a desperate flailing champion.
When the end came the words of Gonzalez in his recent interview with the Post, about what this would mean for him, were there for all to see. All the hard work, the starving to make weight, the expectations of following in the shadow of the legendary Alexis Arguello were all gone. Tears rolled down his face as he was carried head high in the ring.
This wasn’t just a moment for Gonzalez though; on the weekend of their independence a nation of people starved of the most basic things in life had been given a moment, a moment to forget all their worries and come together to celebrate their new king.
For many westerners this may seem like an overstatement but if you’ve ever been in the jungles of the Philippines with 50 people huddled around a TV watching Manny Pacquaio fight, you might just understand.
This was a great day for the Nicaraguan people, a day to take pride in their country. With two champions now at the minimum weight, they can lay claim to being the toughest little hombres on the planet.
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