NEW YORK -- In the end, it wasn't the kind of storybook ending Brian Viloria had hoped for.
Viloria (36-5, 22 KO's) succumbed to relentless pressure coming from WBC and Ring Magazine flyweight world champion, Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez (44-0, 38 KO's), losing by 9th round technical knockout at Madison Square Garden, Saturday night, October 17.
The crowd, filled with Gonzalez supporters from Nicaragua, cheered the pound-for-pound champion on as he met Viloria's challenge straight ahead.
The 34-year old Viloria came out firing behind a stiff left jab and a laser sharp right cross. Fixated on going to the body, Viloria dug deep and put the pressure on Gonzalez in the opening rounds, hoping to take the steam out of his opponent.
A short right hand to the temple sent Viloria to the canvas in round three, but the Filipino-American was able to recover quickly and maintained the pressure on Gonzalez.
By the middle rounds however, Gonzalez started to pick up the pace, throwing his trademark combinations with unbelievable accuracy.
In the 8th round, the ringside physician checked up on Viloria who appeared to have taken too many headshots. The doctor allowed Viloria to continue, but the end was in sight.
In the 9th, Viloria hurt Gonzalez with a body shot but the latter retaliated with another multi-punch combination. As Viloria sat on the ropes, a determined Gonzalez began to tee off. Referee Benjy Esteves saved Viloria from further punishment, giving the TKO victory to Chocolatito.
It was a valiant effort from Viloria, who went into the fight in the best shape of his career, but Gonzalez is the real deal and definitely lived up to the hype.
The courage Viloria displayed is nothing short of heroic in the face of adversity. Viloria truly poured everything he had left into this fight but came out on the losing end.
There's no shame in losing to one of the sport's best.
"He's number one for a reason," said Viloria, in the post-fight interview with HBO's Max Kellerman.
"He's a great fighter, very strong, very precise with his punches."
Viloria told Kellerman that Gonzalez was without a doubt the best fighter he's ever fought, which says a lot about the young pound-for-pound king.
Viloria has been in the ring with the best flyweights of the lower weight classes and has always come up big. A few years ago, he was on the cusp of superstardom, becoming the first man to unify the flyweight titles in 50 years.
It appears however, that his best days are behind him.
At 34 years of age, Viloria is on the tail-end of a remarkable career which saw him capture the world title on numerous occasions. He's fought and defeated the best in his division and along the way built a solid following both in the United States and in the Philippines.
Setbacks to Juan Francisco Estrada and Roman Gonzalez however may prove to be the end of the road for the proud former world champion.
For a fighter on the crossroads of whether to continue on or hang up the gloves, he'll have a lot to think about in the coming months.