For nearly a year, Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez had been the WBO’s No. 1 contender at 115lbs.
Not anymore.
The WBO’s latest ratings update – released August 21 and reflecting results through August 15 – no longer ranks Gonzalez at junior bantamweight or in any other weight class.
And because of that, Andrew Moloney has moved up from No. 2 to No. 1.
Gonzalez’s last fight was in July 2024, when he scored a 10th-round TKO over the 27-5 Rober Barrera in a bantamweight bout. That was Chocolato’s first time back in the ring since his trilogy with Juan Francisco Estrada wrapped in December 2022. Gonzalez, 52-4 (42 KOs), will soon be concluding his latest long layoff; he’s scheduled for a September 12 bout in his hometown of Managua, Nicaragua, against Hector Robles, 13-8-3 (4 KOs).
As for Moloney, the 34-year-old from Australia was already on the verge of a potential shot at the IBF title. But when his elimination bout with Argi Cortes in Mexico kept getting postponed – and then had its location changed – Moloney pulled out.
Moloney briefly held the secondary WBA belt at 115lbs before losing it in his first fight with Joshua Franco in 2020. He would go 0-2 with one no contest in his trilogy with Franco. In 2023, Moloney was on the receiving end of one of the year’s highlight-reel knockouts, downed by Junto Nakatani in the 12th round.
Moloney has gone 2-1 since, outpointing the 13-1 Judy Flores in late 2023, dropping a split decision to Pedro Guevara in May 2024, and putting away the 47-6-2 Jakrawut Majungoen in three rounds last December.
He is now in line for a shot at Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, who has the WBC and WBO belts as well as the Ring Magazine championship. Rodriguez is scheduled for a unification bout with WBA titleholder Fernando Martinez on November 22.
Moloney’s next bout has not yet been announced.
David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
