Decades from now, boxing fans will look back on the first quarter of the 21st century the way fans today look back on the years that gave the sport names like Joe Gans, Jack Dempsey and Jimmy Wilde.

The first two names that will jump off the page from the early 2000s will probably still be Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. There is a cluster of greats behind them who also achieved lasting greatness.

All-time greatness.

Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez is part of that cluster. 

As the Nicaraguan master continues his thrilling second act, he is elevating his historical standing after it appeared his best days were behind him. The sad loss of his trainer, a knockout loss to Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, and a knee injury all pointed to an ending. 

Gonzalez has made them a beginning of reinvention. Gonzalez showed he still had an A-game when he defeated Khalid Yafai for a title at Jr. bantamweight in 2020. After Saturday’s night’s thrashing of WBC flyweight titlist Julio Cesar Martinez in a non-title affair, it’s time to rethink the entire narrative about Gonzalez.

He’s not an aging fighter mustering up one more good performance at a time.

Barring questionable judging in his rematch with Juan Francisco Estrada last year, Gonzalez could have been making his first defense as the lineal champion of what remains one of boxing’s deepest and most competitive weight classes. Instead, he is just 5-1 since the second Sor Rungvisai loss with four straight contests against fighters ranked top ten or champion in their class by TBRB or The Ring. 

Estrada is the recognized championship leader at Jr. bantamweight. Martinez was the consensus number one flyweight coming into the fight this weekend. Gonzalez appeared to get the better of Estrada and beat the living hell out of Martinez on Saturday night. 

Old men don’t get the better of that level in two straight fights. 

Gonzalez is still one of the best fighters in the world, period. 

Saturday was a clinic of combination punching, smart footwork, and subtle defense. Martinez stayed in the fight for a few rounds but he couldn’t keep up. The vast gap in skill and experience took over. With victory beyond reach for Martinez, Gonzalez didn’t let up and continued to work until the last moments of the fight. 

Even after all this time, he’s out there closing shows.

Can he close his career with a flourish?  

Futures: Martinez goes back to flyweight and time will tell whether the rounds with Gonzalez made him better or took years off the valiant younger man. Martinez went for it in the final round, a stark contrast to the effort we saw a week ago from Chris Colbert in a similar scoring hole. Martinez wanted to win as long as he was standing and tried to find a path to get there. Sometimes, being good isn’t good enough. Living legends have that effect.

For Gonzalez, who Jake Donovan reports says he intends to stay at 115 lbs., options are mixed for the moment but the options readily available are all interesting. Newly crowned IBF titlist Fernando Martinez put out a cheeky tweet. The team around WBO titlist Kazuto Ioka made their desires known. 

Estrada and Sor Rungvisai may be facing brothers Joshua Franco and Jesse Rodriguez as the WBA and WBC picture is sorted out. Gonzalez against Ioka is a serious scrap between two of the four men to hold belts from 105-115. Martinez would be an interesting chance at a title against a fresh, TV friendly face. There is also veteran Donnie Nietes. Nietes has no belt but he has a win over Ioka and also won belts from 105-115. Gonzalez’s career would feel all the more complete with matches against both Ioka and Nietes. 

If Estrada is still there a fight or two from now they can revisit the rubber match. Gonzalez could also ultimately see the only man to decisively defeat him one more time: Sor Rungvisai. 

Jr. bantamweight has been so good for so long the assumption seemed to be we were past the best of a golden era. Saturday said that’s a bad assumption and we should just keep enjoying a rare time with open arms for as long as they keep delivering.  

Cliff’s Notes…

Jose Ramirez-Jose Pedraza was a solid clash of former titlists but never really caught fire. Pedraza can’t seem to get into the next tier at Jr. welterweight and may be scooting toward gatekeeping. Ramirez rebounded well enough from his first loss to Josh Taylor and kept himself in line to pick up a belt if and when Taylor vacates to move to welterweight…It’s time to start beating the drums for Emanuel Navarrete-Mauricio Lara. That fight can’t miss.  

Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, a member of the International Boxing Research Organization, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.