After the fight: Chocolatito and Juan Francisco Estrada are looking super fly

Super flyweights Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez and Juan Francisco Estrada were victorious and proved that boxing’s lighter divisions are often undervalued. 

In a sport that often pays per pound, the super flyweights and other lighter division boxers are representing during the pandemic. Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez and Juan Francisco Estrada were victorious in their bouts on Friday, Oct. 23, and again showed that size doesn’t matter in boxing.

The previous weekend, Teofimo Lopez defeated Vasiliy Lomachenko in arguably the most anticipated contest of 2020 to become the undisputed lightweight world champion. According to The Athletic, Lomachenko received around $3.25 million, while Lopez made $1.25 million. Those are healthy sums, especially considering the dire financial times.

Losing a live gate is going to dramatically decrease the amount that boxers can net for fight deals. Lomachenko and Lopez still made some nice money, but payments tend to drop off south of lightweight.

There are featherweights and super featherweights that have made good money over the years. Still, the amount typically pales compared to welterweights and above who aren’t as talented or gifted as lighter division boxers.

Fighter purses as they are reported aren’t always accurate, but the payouts are usually in the ballpark of what’s published.

At the age of 33, Gonzalez, who’s better known as Chocolatito, defied age and defeated Israel Gonzalez. Gonzalez (25-4, 11 KOs) is Chocolatito’s junior by 10 years, but Chocolatito pressured the younger, bigger boxer and outworked him over 12 rounds to retain his WBA super flyweight title.

A rematch between Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez and Juan Francisco Estrada would have a lot of hype, but they wouldn’t receive what they’re owed

Chocolatito (50-2, 41 KOs) is a four-division champion and a boxing legend. He bounced back from back to back 2017 losses to Srisaket Sor Rungvisai to regain a world title and establish himself as one of the most resilient and spirited boxers in the world. Boxing fans love him, but he doesn’t receive enough credit or love considering his immense talent.

Sportekz.com reports Chocolatito’s purse from his matchup with Gonzalez as $500,000. He likely received more with pay-per-view sales and distribution rights, but a fighter of his talent deserves more. A middleweight or heavyweight of equal ability would probably get much more than that.

Optics and stereotypes play a big role in boxer payouts. Smaller fighters don’t present the same menacing image as heavyweights. People pay for sensationalism and pre-imagined imagery of how a fight will play out.

There’s also the viewpoint that smaller fighters don’t produce ample knockouts compared to heavier boxers. There’s truth to that, but a knowledgeable boxing fan doesn’t need a knockout to be entertained.

Unfortunately, casual purveyors of the sport seek them out. They want to see the trainwreck and don’t appreciate the pugilistic artistry performed in the ring. They also don’t fully understand the courage it takes to step into the ring, or worse, don’t care.

Estrada (41-3, 28 KOs) and Carlos Cuadras produced a Fight of the Year contender in their rematch. Cuadras (39-4-1, 27 KOs) rocked and dropped Estrada in round 3, but Estrada displayed his heart by battling back to knock down Cuadras twice in round 11 and forced the referee to stop the fight, winning by TKO.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lhfbPd-NEI.

Even though Estrada successfully defended his WBC super flyweight belt in a heroic performance, he only received $300,000, per Sportekz.com.

Looking at Estrada’s fight history, he went 94-4 as an amateur, but it took winning the reality T.V. show Campeón Azteca to establish his name before he was taken seriously. Without the gimmick and exposure of reality T.V., Estrada might never have been discovered.

A unification bout between Chocolatito and Estrada is as desirable as Lomachenko vs. Lopez, but they would receive far less money simply because they’re super flyweights and don’t generate the same interest as their lightweight counterparts. Chocolatito defeated Estrada in 2012 by a unanimous decision, which would add to the drama but wouldn’t add much to their purses.

The little guys of boxing are underappreciated. Two weeks ago, I interviewed undefeated flyweight boxer Nico Hernandez who made his BKFC debut. Hernandez entered the realm of bare-knuckle fighting because he couldn’t get a respectable offer from a single boxing promoter despite being a 2016 Olympic bronze medalist.

There’s a pay discrepancy in boxing directly related to weight class, and it isn’t fair. Just because that’s the way things have been doesn’t mean that’s the way things should be. Surely, paying boxers like Chocolatito and Estrada what they’re worth is the right thing to do.