The Mexican Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez, the great figure of current boxing, defeated his compatriot Jaime Munguía by unanimous decision in Las Vegas (United States) on Saturday and retained his undisputed super middleweight champion belts.
Álvarez sent Munguía to the canvas in the fourth round and then handled the fight with his greatest experience until winning in the middle of an electric atmosphere at the T-Mobile Arena, packed with 20,000 fans who enjoyed this battle between Mexican fighters.
‘Canelo’ thus ended Munguía’s undefeated status, the first compatriot he had fought in the last six years, although he still has not scored a victory by knockout since 2021.
“He is a great boxer, he is tall, he is smart,” declared ‘Canelo’. “But I took my time, that’s why I have my experience. I did very well.”
At 33 years old, the boxer from Guadalajara was eager to deliver a big blow after recent lackluster victories since his unexpected defeat against Dmitry Bivol in 2022, in a failed foray into a higher category.
‘Canelo’ remains the undisputed super middleweight champion ((168 pounds-76.2 kg) since his victory against the American Caleb Plant in November 2021, his last fast-track victory.
Faced with voices asking him to face David Benavidez, another rival of Mexican origin, instead of Munguía, ‘Canelo’ responded that he is willing to clash with anyone but under his own conditions.
“They asked me for (Miguel) Cotto, for (Floyd) Mayweather... And I fought all of them,” he claimed.
Canelo vs. Munguia results
- Super Middleweight (Undisputed Title) - Canelo Álvarez defeated Jaime Munguía by unanimous decision of the judges
- Welterweight (WBC Interim World Title) - Mario Barrios defeated Fabián Maidana by unanimous decision
- Featherweight (WBC Interim Title) - Brandon Figueroa defeated Magdaleno by knockout in Round 9
- Regular Welterweight (WBA Title) - Eimantas Stanionis defeated Gabriel Maestre by unanimous decision
- Super welterweight - Vito Mielnicki defeated Ronald Cruz via unanimous decision (99-89, 98-90 and 96-92)
- Super middleweight - William Scull defeated Sean Hemphill via unanimous decision (79-72, 78-73 and 76-5)
- Super Welterweight - Jesús Ramos defeated Johan González by TKO in Round 9 (2:56)
- Super light weight -
- Super Bantamweight - Alan Picasso defeated Damien Vásquez by knockout in Round 5 (2:11)
- Lightweight - Julian Bridges defeated Jabin Cholle via unanimous decision (59-55 3x.)
- Lightweight - Adrián Torres defeated Arsen Poghosyan via unanimous decision (60-54 3x.)
- Catchweight - Lawrence King defeated Anthony Holloway via unanimous decision (59-55 3x.)
How to watch Canelo vs. Munguia
- Date/Time: Saturday 05.04.2024 at 08:00 PM ET
- US Broadcast: Pay Per View (DAZN - $89.99 / Amazon Prime Video - $89.95)
- Promotion: Canelo Promotions
- Co-Promoter: Golden Boy Promotions, TGB Promotions, Zanfer Boxing, Clase y Talento
- Venue: T Mobile Arena
- Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
- Enclosure: Ring
- Matchmaker: Tom Brown
- Boxing Bouts: 12
Main Card - Canelo vs. Munguia
- Canelo Álvarez (60-2-2) vs. Jaime Munguia (43-0-0)
- Mario Barrios (28-2-2) vs. Fabian Maidana (22-2-2)
- B. Figueroa (24-1-1) vs. J. Magdaleno (29-2-2)
- E. Stanionis (14-0-0) vs. G. Maestre (6-0-1)
- V. Mielnicki Jr. (17-1-0) vs. Ronald Cruz (19-3-1)
- William Scull (21-0-0) vs. Sean Hemphill (16-1-0)
Prelims
- Jesus Ramos (20-1-0) vs. Johan Gonzalez (34-2-0)
- G. Valenzuela (28-3-1) vs. Jose Angulo (14-8-0)
- Damien Vazquez (17-3-1) vs. David Picasso (27-0-1)
- Jabin Chollet (9-0-0) vs. Julian Bridges (4-0-0)
- Adrian Torres (7-0-0) vs. A. Poghosyan (3-1-1)
- Lawrence King (15-1-0) vs. A. Hollaway (7-4-3)
Canelo vs. Munguia fight card, odds
- Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (c) -500 vs. Jaime Munguia +400, undisputed super middleweight championship
- Mario Barrios (c) -1000 vs. Fabian Maidana +600, WBC interim welterweight championship
- Brandon Figueroa (c) -1200 vs. Jessie Magdaleno +700, WBC interim featherweight championship
- Eimantas Stanionis (c) vs. Gabriel Maestre, WBA “regular” welterweight championship
- Alvarez, who on Saturday will put his four belts in the super middleweight category (168 pounds - 76.2 kg) into play, marked a weight of 166.8 pounds (75.6 kg) and Munguía 167.4 (75.9).
Preview Canelo vs. Munguia
In the open-air ceremony, both boxers respectfully greeted each other again on the stage in front of the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Nevada), the scene of the fight.
Several thousand followers resisted under the sun of the Nevada desert to record the show with their cell phones to the sound of mariachis.
“I feel very good, I feel in my best moment because I no longer have injuries. And I am going to show it on Saturday,” Canelo said on stage.
The 33-year-old boxer from Guadalajara (west) underwent surgery on his left hand in 2022 after his loss to Dmitry Bivol, the second in his 60-fight career.
Canelo remains one of the few boxers today capable of drawing large crowds, but his career is in need of a big victory after he has failed to achieve a knockout in his last four appearances in the ring.
For the first time since 2017, the undisputed super middleweight champion will face a rival from his country, in an event framed in the Mexican festivities of May 5 and in which this time he will be accompanied on his way to the ring by the singer Luis R. Conriquez.
“I’m in my best shape ever. I’m going to give it my all. My effort, my talent. I hope all of Mexico enjoys this fight because it’s for them,” Canelo exclaimed in Toshiba Plaza, where for once he had to share the support with his opponent.
“I’m very excited, it’s a great opportunity. I’m going to make the most of it and tomorrow I’m going to be world champion,” predicted Munguía, a fighter with a powerful punch who counts his 43 fights as victories (34 of them by knockout).
The boxer from Tijuana (northwest), six years younger and ten centimeters taller than Canelo, also celebrated that Mexico “is going to vibrate with this great fight.”
Canelo Alvarez’s last fights
- 09/30/2023 - Victory over Jermell Charlo by Unanimous Decision
- 05/06/2023 - Victory over John Ryder by unanimous decision
- 09/17/2022 - Win over Gennady Golovkin by unanimous decision
- 07/05/2022 - Defeat over Dmitry Bivol by unanimous decision
- 06/11/2021 - Victory over Caleb Plant by TKO in Round 11
Last fights of Jaime Munguía
- 01/27/2024 - Victory over John Ryder via TKO in Round 9.
- 10/06/2023 - Victory over Sergiy Derevyanchenko by unanimous decision.
- 11/19/2022 - Victory over Gonzalo Gaston Coria via knockout in Round 3
- 12/06/2022 - Victory over Jimmy Kelly by TKO at Round 5
- 02/20/2022 - Victory over D’Mitrius Ballard by TKO in Round 3
