Brian Viloria sends Omar Soto to the canvas (Photo : Jhay Oh Otamias)
Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez (43-0, 37 KO's) of Nicaragua is lightning fast, powerful and undefeated. He's the most dominant flyweight that exists in the sport of boxing today, and is pound-for-pound one of the best fighters in the world.
His next opponent, former unified flyweight champion Brian "The Hawaiian Punch" Viloria (36-4, 22 KO's) of Waipahu, Hawaii however, possesses scary knockout power according to Gonzalez' trainer.
Speaking to BoxingScene.com, trainer Arnulfo Obando, doesn't subscribe to the thought that Viloria will be a walk in the park for his prized ward.
"Viloria is the best opponent that Roman could face," said Obando.
Before Viloria was selected as the Nicaraguan's next opponent, Mexican-American Giovani Segura and former foe Juan Francisco Estrada were also being considered.
"Giovanni Segura is a good fighter, but after watching his last fights he's not the same," added Obando.
Estrada on the other hand, is a viable opponent for Chocolatito, but Viloria was simply a bigger name, hence the obvious choice.
Though Viloria is up there in age, at 34 years old, it also means Viloria has a wealth of experience, not to mention solid, Olympic-level boxing skills and devastating knockout power.
"It's a difficult fight. Although a lot of people are talking about the age of Viloria, we can not forget that he's a very dangerous man who is experienced, hits hard, has excellent combinations. He will be coming to fight," said Obando.
Viloria has 22 knockouts out of his 36 victories, and has recorded his last three fights within the distance. Suffice to say, Viloria's power is at the top of the list of things Gonzalez should worry about.
Obando acknowledged Viloria's monstrous left hand and observed that he "really hits hard" with it and could do a "lot of damage."
Viloria, also known to be a tremendous body puncher, will look to score the upset over the unbeaten champion and claim the WBC world flyweight title which will be on the line.
In an interview with The Philippine Star, Viloria expressed what he will bring to the table on fight night.
"I think [Gonzalez'] weakness is he hasn't been tested by a puncher like myself and we'll also have to see if he can withstand pressure," said Viloria.
"I'm pulling out all the stops to prepare for this. I'm bringing in strength and conditioning trainers and basically working hard in the gym like never before."
Viloria and Gonzalez will meet on October 17, at the Madison Square Garden in New York. The pair will co-headline a fantastic HBO fight card that features Gennady Golovkin defending his middleweight title against David Lemieux.
