LAS VEGAS- Boxer Jaime Munguía shocked his viewers with the ability to put up an amazing fight with Canelo Alvarez, but it wasn’t enough to beat the super middleweight champion.
Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 KOs) defended his undisputed super middleweight title against Munguía (43-1-34 KOs). Scorecards show Alvarez winning 116-111,117-110, and 115-112, leaving Alvarez with the unanimous decision win.
As the fighters touched gloves to start the match, it was clear to the audience that they did not come to play. Munguía showed great determination to properly execute his training against Alvarez. Although Munguía out-punched Alvarez, Alvarez’s punching accuracy was ahead by almost 20%.
As the fight continued, Munguía did not back down. However, the same issue arose from Munguía. Munguía kept moving towards Alvarez while Alvarez stayed patient and worked on his accuracy. Munguía threw 127 more punches than Alvarez, just for Alvarez to land 64 more punches, the entire fight.
As the fight hit the fourth round, both fighters were hungry for a victory. Both continued their combos, with powerful intent, and a massive right uppercut from Alvarez sent Munguía to the ground.
This was the first time in Munguia’s pro-career ever to be knocked down.
Despite Munguía being knocked down, the fourth round was an amazing exchange from both fighters. They were neck and neck with punching accuracy, with Alvarez at 21/56 (37.5%) and Munguía at 20/55 (36.4%), according to CompuBox punch stats.
The knockdown did not stop Munguía as he continued with an impressive performance.
While the fight progressed, the fighters became visibly more tired, and slowed down the pace. Working on accuracy and power punches, Alvarez was able to dominate the rest of the fight.
Leaving the fight, Canelo still remains the undisputed super middleweight champion, and proved he is the Mexican face of boxing.
“I take my time. I have 12-rounds to win the fight, and I did,” Alvarez said post fight.
“It means a lot. I’m glad I gave Jaime this opportunity. He’s a great guy and a great champion, and he is going to continue doing good…All around is watching us, the Mexicans, and I feel proud to represent Mexico. Viva Mexico cabrones!” Alvarez said in the ring after the fight.
Canelo will continue his training, but after this heavily anticipated fight, he said he is looking forward to taking a break and spending time with his family, regardless if his fans approve.
Munguía, defeated for the first time in his pro career, remains grateful and humble.
“It was going well and I let my hands go but he was a fighter with a lot of experience, obviously. The loss hurts, it definitely hurts…I started well, but I obviously had some problems”, Munguía said.
Both fighters represent their love and pride for Mexico and successfully entertained their viewers for Cinco De Mayo weekend.
