Canelo Alvarez crushes Jaime Munguia in Cinco de Mayo showdown.
This past Saturday night in Las Vegas, boxing superstar Saul “Canelo” Alvarez defended his super middleweight titles with a dominant performance against rising Mexican fighter Jaime Munguia. Canelo knocked down Munguia in the fourth round and went on to hand the 27-year-old his first ever loss as a professional.
3 rounds in the books 🥊🔥
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The fight had some extra drama leading up to it, as Canelo seemed to be feuding with Munguia’s promoter, the legendary Oscar De La Hoya. The two exchanged some heated words at the pre-fight press conference, with De La Hoya even threatening legal action against Canelo.
De La Hoya Sees Munguia’s Loss to Canelo as Parallel to Canelo’s Defeat Against Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Oscar De La Hoya gives his reaction to Canelo Alvarez beating Jaime Munguia at the post-fight press conference: "It's just like Floyd Mayweather vs Canelo – Canelo got schooled and then he became the face of boxing."
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After the fight, De La Hoya took a more respectful tone, saying he sees parallels between Munguia’s loss and Canelo’s own defeat against Floyd Mayweather back in 2013. De La Hoya believes this experience will ultimately make the young Munguia a better fighter, just like Canelo’s loss to Mayweather helped propel him to superstardom.
“I thought Jaime did excellent against the current face of boxing right now,” De La Hoya said. “I strongly feel that — I take nothing away from Canelo, I’ve always said he’s a good fighter in the ring. But, this experience for Jaime will just take him to another level.
“It’s just like Mayweather and Canelo.,” De La Hoya added. “It’s the same thing. Canelo got school and then he became the face of boxing. Same thing with Munguia. He gained experience. He didn’t get schooled. He gains experience and becomes a better fighter. This is just the beginning for Jaime.”
Munguia himself admitted that he lost his composure after the knockdown, rather than being hurt by Canelo’s punches. At 27 years old and with a 44-1 record, Munguia has shown he has the potential to be a future champion. This loss to one of the best in the business could be the wake-up call he needs to take his career to the next level.
“When he hit me with the uppercut I was more surprised than hurt,” Munguia said through an interpreter. “I was not hurt, but it was a good punch … He was in great shape and condition. I was winning the first rounds, and then after the knockdown I fell into his game and he started to beat me with his spirit.
“I think I got desperate to recover from that knockdown and I started changing my game, and I think with his experience, he started getting into his game with the counter-punches,” Munguia said.
While Canelo remains the top dog in the sport right now, Munguia’s future looks bright. This setback may end up being the push he needs to follow a similar path to greatness as Canelo did after his own loss to Mayweather.
