Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez Vs. Julio Cesar Martinez : Odds, Purses Records, Prediction

Originally, Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez was supposed to be participating in one of 2022’s most anticipated bouts, a third match against Juan Francisco Estrada at super flyweight. But after Estrada was infected by Covid, it presented a fantastic opportunity for the best fighter a division below in flyweight. Now, boxing fans will get a fascinating fight between Martinez, who is on my top-15 pound-for-pound fighters list, and Gonzalez, formerly No. 1 in the world. Here’s everything you need to know about Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Julio Cesar Martinez, including the odds, their records and a prediction on who will win.

First off, we’re not sure this fight will actually happen on Saturday night. That’s because Martinez on Friday weighed in 1.4 pounds over the contracted weight of 115 pounds. Which means he’ll have to get weighed in again on Saturday.

Assuming this fight does happen, though, it should be a fun one (even though Martinez will be docked 20% of his purse for missing weight; half of that fine will go to Gonzalez).

Gonzalez is coming off a tough loss vs. Estrada one year ago that many, including me, thought he actually won. But the judges had it for Estrada by split decision. Despite the defeat, Gonzalez’s performance in one of the best fights of the year showed that, even though he’s 34 (absolutely ancient by lower weight class standards), he’s still a top-notch fighter.

But is he still good enough to hold off a young and impressive (and heavier) Martinez?

“My team said that Martinez was ready and that was it,” Gonzalez said, via RingTV.com. “As I’ve said before, he’s a good fighter. He has his own distinguishing qualities and we’ve got to be ready for March 5.

“Like always, this is going be a good fight. I’m going to go forward, do what I always do, and we’ll see what happens when the bell rings. We’ve prepared the same; everything is going to be the same. The only thing is, right now, we’re just waiting. We’re waiting for that moment, for fight day, to step inside that ring.”

Meanwhile, Martinez said he knows exactly who he’s facing.

“We know we’re not going against an easy opponent,” Martinez said, via DAZN. “We know we are going against a great idol. If we have never underestimated any opponent, it will be even less so this time. We are going to prepare not a thousand but a million to leave everything in the ring … it’s going to be a war. We will not disappoint.”

Here’s hoping the fight will actually happen, and we can see just what Martinez is planning to leave in the ring.

Here’s more info on the Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Julio Cesar Martinez showdown that U.S. viewers can watch on DAZN beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET.

Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Julio Cesar Martinez odds

Despite the weigh-in mishap, the odds have remained steady. As of this writing, Gonzalez was a -150 favorite (wager $150 to win $100) while Martinez was the +120 underdog (win $120 on a $100 bet). I slightly lean toward Gonzalez to pull off the victory, so you could bet the money line or you could go with him winning by stoppage (+210) or by decision (+240) for more value. Personally, I like the latter prop bet a little bit more.

Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Julio Cesar Martinez purses

According to boxing journalist Dan Rafael, here’s how much Gonzalez and Martinez will earn.

It’s a great payday for Gonzalez and Martinez (for comparison’s sake, it’s more than Gonzalez made for the first ($550,000) and second ($600,000) Sor Rungvisai fights, and it’s more than Martinez made when he won his flyweight title vs. Rosales ($100,000)).

Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Julio Cesar Martinez records

Gonzalez is a no-doubt first-ballot Hall of Famer, and he’s one of the best lighter-weight fighters in history. At 50-3 (41 KOs), he’s beaten Juan Francisco Estrada, Brian Viloria and Carlos Cuadras, and though he lost twice to Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, leading some to wonder how much Gonzalez had left, he followed that up by blasting through Khalid Yafai in 2020 to win another 115-pound title. Simply put, Gonzalez is a legend.

Martinez has had plenty of success at 112 and 115 pounds, beating Edgar Sosa in Martinez’s seventh pro fight, Cristofer Rosales and Andrew Selby. After losing his pro debut, Martinez (18-1, 14 KOs) has won 18 in a row. He’s never faced anybody with the talent of Gonzalez, but there’s a reason Martinez isn’t much of an underdog.

Roman ‘Chocolatito” Gonzalez vs. Julio Cesar Martinez prediction

There are two ways to look at Martinez missing weight by so much. Either he didn’t have enough time to prepare (remember he’s the replacement fighter) and hasn’t worked himself into optimum shape, or he wanted to be even bigger and stronger than Gonzalez and try to dominate him that way. We don’t know the answer to that question, but I’d lead toward the first choice. That’s why I’m picking Gonzalez to triumph by unanimous decision. Somewhere in the 116-112 range.