Roman Gonzalez and Brian Viloria set for flyweight title fight

A wise veteran confronting the desperation of age.

A phenom who’s overcoming the neglect of coming from Nicaragua and fighting at 112 pounds.

The two of them will step into the Madison Square Garden ring Saturday night as the co-main event to Gennady Golovkin and David Lemieux’s middleweight title unification bout and settle where it goes from here.

Unbeaten World Boxing Council flyweight champion Roman Gonzalez (43-0, 37 knockouts) and former two-division champion Brian Viloria (36-4, 22 KOs) discussed their plans for victory Thursday at Madison Square Garden.

“If I win, great,” Viloria, 34, said. “If I don’t, it’s an uncertain future for me.”

For Gonzalez, the fight is part of a climb he’s made since he was a youth on the dirt floors of his parents’ Nicaragua home. Meeting boxing legend Alexis Arguello at his training camp was a turning point.

“It’s motivated me -- the exposure, fighting on HBO,” Gonzalez said. “I never imagined I’d be where I’m at. I just wanted to help my family.”

Gonzalez strives to do more of the same things that have won him titles in three divisions.

“Arguello is the one who taught him how to be aggressive, how to take boxing to another level,” Gonzalez said. “When I was an amateur, I was a ‘Sweet Pea,’ no one could touch me. As a professional, I knew I had to kill.

“The trick is to be in the best physical condition possible, to be able to have enough oxygen in your brain so you can think smartly of how to box [during the bout]. I go to the gym every day.”

He intends to overwhelm Viloria, but the crafty veteran with three knockouts in his last four victories has a counterattack in mind.

“I’ve been given the chance. I’m going to take it and roll with it,” Viloria said. “He’s got his accolades for a reason, but he doesn’t show anything that I haven’t seen before. To me, he’s a good fighter. He wins fight after fight and has proven himself capable.

“I want to prove the same thing. I’ve never been as relaxed. I know I can’t be any more ready. I know how key this is, I know the enormity of it all, but at the same time I don’t want to psyche myself out. I want to go in there and know I’m prepared to do the best I can, give it your all, regardless of what the outcome is.”

Gonzalez respects his veteran foe, but unmistakably wants to force him to consider a life outside the ring.

“Good fighter, good skill set, I’ve seen almost every one of his fights. He’s very complete,” Gonzalez said. “Every rival has the desire. It might be [because of his] his age, but he’s definitely going to give his best fight ever.

“But I’m going to take control.”

Twitter: @latimespugmire