Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez is a shoe-in to one day enter the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York. He can retire right now, wait the required five-year period, then celebrate with family and friends as he is inducted on a Sunday afternoon in June.

Gonzalez chooses to fight on, even though he has grown older and his famed combinations to the head and body of his opponents do not have the zip as they once did.

He is still an excellent fighter, one that boxing fans have become endeared to, especially those who have followed his career since he became a world titleholder at 105 pounds several years ago.

Gonzalez believes he can still win a world title belt and is motivated more so by his children to come out on top again.

The polarizing figure from Nicaragua, where his popularity is through the roof, will square off against WBA world junior bantamweight titleholder Khalid Yafai Saturday night at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas. The 12-round bout will precede the main event bout between welterweights Mikey Garcia and Jessie Vargas.

Both fights will stream live on DAZN (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT).

Gonzalez (48-2, 40 knockouts) has not fought since Dec. 23, when he stopped Diomel Diocos in the second round. He has won his last two bouts since he was knocked out by Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (aka Wisaksil Wnagek) in September 2017 in a rematch of their 12-round war six months prior, a fight Gonzalez lost even though the consensus at ringside was Gonzalez did enough to win.

The 32-year-old will square off against Yafai (26-0, 15 KOs), who will be making the sixth defense of his world title belt. Gonzalez is confident he can match a solid camp will lead to a strong performance Saturday night.

“Everything went very well in camp,” Gonzalez told BoxingScene over the phone last week. “Training in Coachella, California was great because there were no distractions. I got excellent sparring and I ran in the mountains. My trainer (Marcos Caballero) trained me to my best and he had his sons help him as well. I feel great.”

“Yafai is a world champion for a reason. He’s very strong. He throws hooks well and moves around the ring consistently. I have confidence if this fight goes into the later rounds that it would benefit me.”

Gonzalez’s career looked done after the two losses to Sor Rungvisai. He did not return to the ring for about a year, choosing to spend time with family and reassess his career.

Gonzalez, a devout Christian, also sought solace and answers from God, choosing not to blame anyone for the two losses.

“To be honest, I did have thoughts about retiring after those two losses,” said Gonzalez, who has won world title belts in four different weight classes. “Boxing is a tough sport. I just asked God to continue guiding me, as I’ve always done. I realized that win or lose, I have to keep the faith and moving forward.”

Gonzalez admitted he had to deal with a knee injury that sidelined for several weeks after the second loss to Sor Rungvisai. He also has to take time off from training in recent months to deal with the loss of former world champion Alexis Arguello and Arnulfo Obando, both of whom trained Gonzalez for most of his career.

While he is grateful for the work he currently puts in with Caballero, he does reminisce of both Arguello and Obando.

“Both were big on me throwing combinations. That’s what I worked on a lot during this training camp. Also to utilize the ring more. I listen to what Caballero tells me, but I also realize what got me to this point in my career and that was Alexis and Arnulfo taught me as well. I felt very strong during the training camp as well.”

Should he come out victorious Saturday night, again becoming a world titleholder, Gonzalez might not be in a rush to retire. He credits his ability to lead a clean life for his longevity in the sport, but also credits his family as well.

Gonzalez finds motivation to continue to fight from his three children, ages 16, 8, and 2. That, and his willingness to help others and being an ambassador of the sport, is important to him.

“What motivates me now in my career is my children. They’ve seen me fight and they get great joy out of it. They have told me to keep going and to keep fighting. That hunger to again be a world champion is because of them. They’re the ones push me and want to fight on.”

“I’m from a humble family and I don’t take for granted that I’ve won world title belts in four different weight classes. I do what I can to help the people of Nicaragua, especially the poor. I’m the same person I’ve always been. I still have a lot left to prove. I can still become a champion.”

Francisco A. Salazar has written for Boxingscene since September of 2012 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (Calif.) Star newspaper. He can be reached by email at santio89@yahoo.com or on Twitter at FSalazarBoxing