Joet Gonzalez falls short of title in gritty fight in Texas

Luis Alberto Lopez had a successful start to his weekend by defending his IBF featherweight title against Joet Gonzalez. 

The fight was the main event of a Top Rank show on ESPN that also saw fast-rising Puerto Rican junior middleweight star Xander Zayas (17-0, 10 KO’s) score a TKO 5 over tough Mexican Roberto Valenzuela Jr. (21-5, 20 KO’s).

Another Top Rank prospect to keep a close watch on is unbeaten lightweight Emiliano Fernando Vargas (7-0, 6 KOs) who made his ESPN TV debut with a TKO 3 over Alejandro Guardado (5-1, 1 KO). 

It was a frustrated Joet Gonzalez on Friday night that summed up his performance in his 3rd world title try against champion Lopez.  

“I felt like in the other world title fights I did better. I felt like I got hit less. I did feel like I landed some good shots, but I feel like I’ve could have done a lot better,” he said.

Gonzalez, a talented boxer-puncher was competitive throughout the fight and did indeed land some good shots on the ever-relentless Lopez.

However, in the end, the scores across the board of 118-110, 117-111, and 116-112, reflected the Glendora, California native coming up short. And he was certainly taking full responsibility for his performance and was very hard on himself after the fight.

“I thought the scores should have been a little closer. Overall, I am very disappointed in my performance. I felt that I could have done a lot better. By far, this is the worst performance of my title fights, even though I prepared to the fullest. I am truly disappointed in my performance”. he continued.

Gonzalez turned pro in 2012 and was a perfect 23-0 by 2019. Impressive performances and an unbeaten record earned him a shot at the WBO world featherweight title. However, he came up short over 12 rounds in losing to perhaps the best boxer in the sport in champion Shakur Stevenson.

He followed that up with a win over world title challenger Miguel Marriaga that earned him another title bout against power-punching Emanuel Navarrete whom he hung tough with for the full 12 rounds in losing a completive decision.

After a win in March 2022, came a frustrating, razor-thin loss to former world champion Isaac Dogboe in July 2022. But a comeback win six months ago saw him slotted into another title shot, against Lopez. 

In all 3 title fights, Gonzalez has drawn the toughest of assignments in the supremely slick Stevenson, the incredibly strong Navarrete, and the rugged and relentless Lopez.

Gonzalez shows up in great shape and fights his hardest every time out. If he comes up short, there are no excuses, he handles it like a pro and doesn’t look to deflect responsibility for any of his performances - you have to respect that.

He is only 29 and is a very tough and talented boxer who will hopefully earn another title shot after a much-deserved rest.

Gonzalez is 3-4 in his last 7 fights and these are indeed frustrating days for him. But, over 11 years and 30 fights as a pro, he has had an excellent career.

Does he have another title try run in him? I hope so. He deserves another shot at some point, and it would be great to see the 4th time be the charm.