Still pissed off by Estrada-Gonzalez decision

'Chocolatito' deserved to win and other random thoughts

I can’t let it go.

Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez got robbed against Juan Francisco Estrada in their junior bantamweight unification rematch on Saturday night in Dallas and don’t you forget it.

It was a sensational action battle that will undoubtedly be in the conversation for fight of the year but I am still ticked off about the decision.

Estrada fought a great fight but Gonzalez fought a better one — maybe his best — and should be 2-0 against Estrada and a unified champion. Instead, he’s 1-1 and no longer has a world title.

The fight was, at worst 115-113 for Gonzalez. I had it 116-112. I have re-watched the fight twice and there is simply no way to give Estrada seven rounds. I don’t even think you can legitimately give him six but at least if it was a draw Gonzalez wouldn’t have lost his title.

Don’t give me the whole “Oh, it was a close fight that could have gone either way” garbage. Yes, it was close. But, no, it could not have gone either way. A 4-3 baseball game is close but there is one winner.

Judge Jesse Reyes had it right at 115-113 for Gonzalez but the 115-113 scorecard from judge David Sutherland for Estrada was off base. However, the one from now-suspended judge Carlos Sucre, who had it 117-111 for Estrada, was unconscionable and goes down in the pantheon of horrendous scorecards. If you examine the official scorecards there are always what I call “smoking gun” rounds in a controversial decision. Sucre’s “smoking gun” round is the 12th. Gonzalez had perhaps his best round of the fight as he bashed Estrada throughout the final three minutes, yet Sucre had the audacity to give the round to Estrada. It was not a close round. For him to give that round to Estrada was on par with disgraced judge Eugenia Williams giving Evander Holyfield the fifth round in a grotesque draw with Lennox Lewis in their first fight for the undisputed heavyweight title in 1999.

Estrada fought his heart out as did Gonzalez, so my criticism is not at all aimed at Estrada. All he did was fight. Two judges, however, deprived Gonzalez of perhaps his greatest victory in what I view as the most significant fight in the history of the 115-pound division, which was created in 1983, other than the unification fight between bitter Albuquerque, New Mexico, rivals Johnny Tapia and Danny Romero in 1997.

This is the second time Gonzalez has been on the short end of the stick in a fight most thought he won and there is a legitimate argument that the four-division champion and former pound-for-pound king, who will waltz into the International Boxing Hall of Fame on the first ballot, should be undefeated.

Besides getting shafted on Saturday, he did not deserve a majority decision loss to Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in their classic battle in 2017 that most of us at ringside had Gonzalez clearly winning. Had Gonzalez gotten the decision that night that he so obviously deserved, he would have remained junior bantamweight champion and not had an immediate rematch with Sor Rungvisai in which he got knocked out.

Even with an official loss on his record from Saturday’s fight, Gonzalez, who is in the twilight of his career, fought a fantastic fight. If there’s a trilogy with Estrada, fine, but Gonzalez doesn’t need it. To me he is 2-0 in their rivalry.

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Speaking of Gonzalez, one of my fantasy fights would be to see him against Hall of Famer Ricardo Lopez, either at strawweight or junior flyweight.

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They might not be the “Four Kings” of the 1980s – Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns, Marvin Hagler and Roberto Duran – but Gonzalez, Estrada, Sor Rungvisai and Carlos Cuadras have battled each other in a round robin filled with rematches and great fights. If you’re a fan of the little guys they have brought us huge entertainment.

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Since Wednesday was the 31st anniversary of the legendary first fight between Julio Cesar Chavez and Meldrick Taylor, I thought of two junior welterweight fantasy matches I would have loved to see: Chavez against Aaron Pryor and Taylor against Terence Crawford. Incredible fights!

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Is that bizarre Floyd Mayweather-Logan Paul exhibition being rescheduled?

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Yes, Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua have signed for their undisputed heavyweight championship fight, according to Joshua promoter Eddie Hearn. But – and it’s a huge but -- before you get too excited realize this: It’s not actually a done deal until they have a site locked in and tens of millions of dollars in a site fee to go with it that the two fighters must sign off on. The promoters have about a month to get it settled. Given the crowd limitations during the pandemic, whether a site can deliver enough cash to satisfy everyone remains to be seen.

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All due respect to Maurice Hooker but I think Vergil Ortiz Jr. beats him handily on Saturday.

Quick hits

Heavyweight contender Oscar Rivas (27-1, 19 KOs), 33, of Montreal stopped Sylvera Louis (8-6, 4 KOs), also of Montreal, in the third round of their eight-rounder on Tuesday night at the Hotel Plaza Quebec in Quebec City, where promoter Yvon Michel put on his first card in 16 months because of the coronavirus pandemic. Rivas, who had not fought since a competitive decision loss to Dillian Whyte for an interim world title in July 2019 in London, beat Louis for the second time, having won a four-round decision against him in 2012. In the rematch, Rivas dominated until Louis retired after the third round.

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Weights from Salinas, Puerto Rico for Thursday’s Ring City USA card on NBCSN: Alberto Machado 135 pounds, Angel Fierro 134.8; Jose Martinez 117.8, Israel Gonzalez 117; Marcos Delgado 173.6, Joe Ward 173.8; Maricela Cornejo 158.2, Alma Ibarra 156; Angel Acosta 114, Gilberto Mendoza 113; Jose Roman 146.6, Roque Junco 146; Edwin Valentin 135, Hector Marengo 135.2.

Show and tell

Floyd Mayweather and the late Diego Corrales were on a collision course. They both were undefeated junior lightweight titleholders promoted by Top Rank when they were placed together on an HBO doubleheader in an effort to build up the inevitable fight. The doubleheader was on March 18, 2000 – 21 years ago on Thursday – and while the show itself was not entirely memorable it was to me. Mayweather retained his title by cruising to a one-sided decision over Goyo Vargas in the main event and Corrales blasted out Derrick Gainer in the third round to keep his belt in the co-feature. It is memorable to me because on that day I left behind my sports reporter job at the newspaper in Binghamton, New York, and drove to Northern Virginia because the following day was going to be my first day of work at my new job as the boxing writer for USA Today. After arriving in Arlington, Virginia, where the USA Today offices used to be located, I moved into a long-term hotel a short walk from the office. I would live there for about a month while finding a permanent place to live. I arrived at the hotel that evening – just in time to unpack a few things and watch the fights on HBO. I was excited because I knew the next day was my first day officially being on the boxing beat. Here is a mint program in my collection from that Mayweather/Corrales doubleheader.

Gonzalez photo: Melina Pizano/Matchroom Boxing