Roman Gonzalez wants his title back

Revenge can be a great motivator.

Last March, defending WBC flyweight champion Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez faced challenger Srisaket Sor Rungvisai on the undercard of the Gennady Golovkin vs. Danny Jacobs middleweight championship fight.

Gonzalez,30, was expected to prevail. The four-division titleholder entered the contest undefeated in 46 bouts, with 38 knockouts. Many called him the best fighter on the planet.  

A victory over Sor Rungvisai would set up a rematch with Carlos Cuadras. Gonzalez defeated Cuadras the previous September in an exciting 12-round battle.

Cuadras was on board. A rematch made sense.  

But as poet Robert Burns said, “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” 

Sor Rungvisai had other ideas. The determined 30-year-old southpaw from Thailand, who captured the 115-pound belt in 2013, had won 14 consecutive fights since losing his crown to Cuadras in 2014. 

Before the bout, K2 Promotions’ managing director Tom Loeffler talked about how dangerous an opponent Sor Rungvisai would be. Many considered his words hyperbole.

Loeffler wasn’t wrong. Sor Rungvisai was dangerous. He floored Gonzalez in the opening stanza and battled for the next 11 rounds. Gonzalez, with blood streaming from a cut near his red eye caused by a headbutt, fought back. He nailed Sor Rungvisai with numerous shots to the body and head—and appeared to have the edge after 12 bloody rounds.