Written by Miguel Maravilla
The fight that former world champion Jaime Munguia (43-0, 34 KOs) of Tijuana, Mexico, has dreamed of all his boxing career, will be the biggest fight of his career. Munguia will face fellow Mexican superstar and undisputed super middleweight world champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KOs) of Guadalajara. The Mexico showdown will be broadcast live on Prime Video's PBC pay-per-view event from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday, May 4th.
“This is obviously going to be a great battle, a great Mexican war. I'm proud to be headlining this event,” said Jaime Munguia. “We're ready for this stage. We're all ready and we're going to put up a great fight that night. “We're very confident,” Munguia added. Ta.
Face to face, Munguia will face Canelo on Tuesday afternoon, officially announcing the showdown. Instead of hyping things on social media, pushing and shoving, and trying to sell the match with trash talk, the two Mexican fighters showed respect for each other.
Munguia made an impressive stop over John Ryder earlier this year. The British rider distanced himself from Canelo in his last fight, setting the stage for Canelo Munguia, who disposed of the rider in the ninth round.
“I'm not going to take too much from the Canelo vs. Ryder fight because I know every fight is different,” Munguia said. “We just took advantage of the opportunity that we saw,” Munguia added.
Munguia made headlines again in 2018, defeating Saddam Ali by KO in the fourth round to win his first world title and the WBO super welterweight title. Munguia successfully defended his title five times and then moved on to the middleweight division.
“It's been great. I've beaten everyone I've ever faced, taken on every challenge and evolved as a fighter,” Munguia said.
Criticism began to mount as Munguia's opponents were questioned, leading to negative uproar and constant bashing on social media, but most fans don't seem to understand the matchmaking process.
“I have taken advantage of many opportunities. Passed many tests, worked hard, consistently sacrificed, and here we are,” Munguia said. “We're ready for this stage. We're all ready and we're going to put up a great fight that night. “We're very confident,” Munguia added. Ta.
Last year, Munguia had to dig deep and rally in a dangerous fight with Ukraine's Sergiy Derevyanchenko. Munguia scored a late knockdown in the 12th and final round, earning him a split decision.
“I passed a big test. He was a very tough opponent, but my will to win and keep pushing was what made the difference,” Munguia said of his win over Derebeyanchenko.
After that fight a few weeks later, Munguia parted ways with his trainer, former world champion and Hall of Famer Eric Morales, also of Tijuana. Munguia felt it was time for a change again. Morales was replaced by Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach, and the two camped together for the first time to prepare the riders.
“Freddie Roach is not only a great trainer, but a great human being and a great motivator. He always encourages us to keep going and keep training hard,” Munguia said. He talked about training with Freddie Roach.
As a result, Jamie Munguia won by TKO against John Ryder in his first fight under Freddie Roach, and showed a more aggressive side, suffering multiple knockdowns in the ninth round.
“I felt great in the ring and it was a good win. Both matches with John Ryder are completely different matches, but we did our job,” Munguia said.
The Tijuana fighter will temporarily reside in Southern California during camp. Munguia and Roach are currently preparing to take on Mexican superstar Canelo with a training camp held at Roach's famous Wild Card Boxing Gym in Hollywood, California.
“It's finally time to start work and get ready for May 4th. I'm sure we'll prepare well and surprise everyone,” said Munguia during the camp. “We have to be 100 percent for Canelo.”
Canelo successfully defended his undisputed title in September, crushing super welterweight champion Jermall Charlo in 12 rounds and knocking him down for a decision victory.
“Canelo is a complete fighter with power and great combinations and knows how to use his body,” Munguia said of Canelo. “Canelo has always been a source of pride and motivation for me. When I got involved in this sport, I often said I wanted to be like him, and now I have the chance to face him and get to know him faster.” I hope to be in a position like that,” Munguia added.
A four-division world champion who has held the super welterweight, middleweight, super middleweight, and light heavyweight titles. Canelo's resume includes wins over Gennady Golovkin, Caleb Plant, Billy Joe Saunders, Sergey Kovalev, Danny Jacobs, Miguel Cotto and Shane Mosley. Alvarez's only losses were to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in September 2013 and Dmitry Bivol in May 2022.
“Canelo has a lot of track record and experience. This is his first time headlining a pay-per-view. The important thing is to work hard in camp, but to be honest, I'm not ready for that. “We're doing it,” Munguia said.
When asked about his plans for tonight's game, Munguia concluded:
“Things change in the ring. I'm fighting smart in that ring, but if things start to get rough. I'm ready to give it my all.”
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