Julio Cesar ‘El Rey’ Martinez received high praise for his willingness to accept a late-notice assignment versus legendary former four-division champion Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez.

Interestingly, it has become the second time in exactly one month where a highly ranked fighter from a lighter weight challenges one the Fab Four of the junior bantamweight division.

Mexico City’s Martinez (18-1, 14KOs) replaces countryman lineal/WBA junior bantamweight king Juan Francisco 'El Gallo' Estrada (42-3, 28KOs), who was due to face Gonzalez in a rubber match this weekend before testing positive for Covid. The scheduled 12-round DAZN main event will come one month to the day of Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez—agreeing to fight for the WBC junior bantamweight title versus former champ Carlos Cuadras on just six days’ notice after former lineal champ Srisaket Sor Rungvisai fell ill just ahead of fight week.

Rodriguez—previously an aspiring junior flyweight contender—went on to win the title via unanimous decision. Martinez—a reigning WBC flyweight titlist whose title is not at risk—is eager to follow suit this Saturday at Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California.

“This is our time to take over, just like Chocolatito, Gallo Estrada and those guys had their time to rule the division,” Martinez told BoxingScene.com of the era dominated by Estrada, Gonzalez, Cuadras and Sor Rungvisai. “This is our moment now.

“I’ve always had a strong desire to become a boxing great, to win multiple world titles and become a Hall of Famer. Nothing will ever stop that.”

Martinez is unbeaten in 20 starts since losing his October 2015 pro debut. The 27-year-old slugger hit paydirt in 2019, winning the WBC flyweight on his second try in a ninth-round knockout of Cristofer Rosales. The first bid at the belt saw Martinez initially claim a third-round knockout of Charlie Edwards in August 2019, only for the verdict to be correctly overturned when replays showed that the knockout blow came while Edwards was already down.

Four title defenses have followed, with hopes of unifying the belts at some point in 2022. That goal remains in place, though Martinez couldn’t pass on the chance to face boxing royalty such as Gonzalez (50-3, 41KOs). A win on Saturday gives him options in two weight divisions, especially at junior bantamweight where their awaits plenty of massive paydays and career defining opportunities.

“I got excited when it was offered,” admits Martinez, who is coming off a two-round No-Contest with McWilliams Arroyo last November. “I never doubted for a second about taking this fight. I accepted this fight right away. I’ve always wanted the big challenges. I come with everything, except the fear of fighting anyone and anywhere.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox