Super flyweight David Alaverdian is scheduled to face Jenn Gonzalez at Mississippi Basketball & Athletics in Jackson, Mississippi, USA. Jackson has been in the news recently as it deals with a lengthy water crisis. Accustomed to fighting in Mexico, this will be Alaverdian's second fight in the U.S.
David is 6-0 with 5 KOs. A 29-year old from Nahariya, Israel, Alaverdian switches stances with ease and possesses tremendous hand-speed and expert footwork. In a recent wide-ranging interview with The Jewish Boxing Blog, the undefeated prospect revealed, "I was expecting my career to move forward much faster than it actually has." While Gonzalez is not a world class opponent, he does represent a slight step-up for the Las Vegas-based fighter.
Jenn "El Infinito" Gonzalez is better than his 9-13-1 record (with 5 KOs) suggests. In his third fight, Gonzalez was immediately disqualified for failing to wear an authorized groin protector. Later in the year, he thoroughly dominated Hector Herrera for seven minutes when a fluke punch cut Gonzalez badly and he lost by TKO. "El Infinito" has also been on the wrong side of several close decisions.
The 25-year old from Santa Tereza, Nicaragua has mostly fought in his home country. The pack of Nicaraguan flyweights and super flyweights is led by the legendary Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez. Fellow countryman Cristofer Rosales won a world flyweight title in 2018. Felix Alvarado is a former world titleholder at light flyweight and is slated to challenge Sunny Edwards for a flyweight world title next month. Beyond the top, there is a vibrant scene filled with talented tough guys who fight each other multiple times in competitive fights. The best of the bunch reach world level.
In his home country, Jenn Gonzalez has fought some tough opponents. He was beaten twice- once in 2019 and the other a year later- by Winston Guerrero, who is currently 18-0. Gonzalez split a pair of fights with former Latin American flyweight titlist Ernesto Irias in 2020. Gonzalez dominated their September fight, but only won by majority decision. Two months later, he lost by split decision in a close bout that should have gone his way. Jenn has lost to Gerardo Zepata (who is now 15-0), Engel Gomez (who was 7-0-1 at the time), and the rough Ricardo Blandon.
Gonzalez has fought internationally three times. In 2019, he challenged Hiram Gallardo in Mexico for something called the WBC youth silver flyweight belt. Gallardo gave Sunny Edwards ten rounds in his next fight. Gonzalez has fought his last two bouts in the United States. In February, he drew with Danny Suarez in the undefeated prospect's hometown, Orlando. A month later, Felix Parrilla stopped him in the third in Atlantic City.
Alaverdian will want to press the action against Jenn Gonzalez. Gonzalez is very effective when he comes forward but much less so when fighting off the backfoot. He outboxed Nelson Luna in 2020, but that was an anomaly. Jenn rarely counters and doesn't jab much. He typically throws a three-punch combination: a lead left hook followed by a distracting right punctuated by a hard left hook, the only punch that was meant to land all along. He has a very good left hook and a sneaky left uppercut. The 23-fight veteran occasionally lands the right, but it's not an especially dangerous punch.
Gonzalez has a good chin and can be a rough customer. He'll hit low if he's in trouble and will punch after the bell if he feels he's been hit late, although he is not generally a dirty fighter. He doesn't believe in "feel-out" rounds. The Nicaraguan keeps a high guard, so he's susceptible to body shots, Alaverdian's specialty. Winston Guerrero assaulted Gonzalez's body in their two fights, and Gonzalez refused to bring his elbows down until it was too late. Worn down in the sixth of their first fight, Gonzalez couldn't stop the attack up top and the fight was stopped.
Gonzalez's best shot against Alaverdian is to apply constant pressure. Jabs are not common weapons in Nicaraguan fights, and Gonzalez's pressure has been thwarted by some well-timed jabs. Alaverdian happens to have a great one. This fight is scheduled for six rounds.
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