Jaime Munguia says he’d like to fight WBO middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade, but he’s moving up to 168. WBO 160-lb champion Andrade (31-0, 19 KOs) and his promoter Eddie Hearn believe that Munguia has been ducking a fight with him, choosing not to use his mandatory status to challenge him for his title.
Hearn and Andrade have been at their wit’s end about Munguia not wanting to challenge for the title, which is why the Rhode Island native is moving up to 168.
Andrade can’t get fighters like Munguia and Jermall Charlo to fight him, so he’s leaving the division.
Since a fight with Andrade (31-0, 19 KOs) is out of the picture, #1 WBC, #1 WBO, #2 WBA Munguia (38-0, 30 KOs) says he’d like to challenge IBF champion Gennadiy Golovkin this year or in 2023.
It’s unknown if Golovkin (41-1-1, 36 KOs) will accommodate Munguia with a fight, though, because he’s got a fight coming up in early April against WBA champion Ryota Murata.
Boxing fans believe that Munguia doesn’t deserve a fight with Golovkin or Canelo because he’s not fought anyone good since moving up to 160 in 2020 and never took any risky fights at 154. Many boxing fans believe Munguia is just looking for a payday against Golovkin, and he knows he won’t win.
“Yeah, I want the fight. Give me the opportunity, and it’ll be a pleasure for me,” said Jaime Munguia to Fight Hub TV when asked if he wants the Gennadiy Golovkin fight later this year.
“I think, yeah,” Munguia said when asked if he still believes he’ll get the Golovkin fight even if he faces Canelo later this year. I want that fight with Andrade, but he will be moving up to 168 pounds. I will stay at 160 lbs, but it’ll be a pleasure when that fight comes.
If Golovkin wins that, he and Canelo Alvarez could meet in September in a fight at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, Mexico. That’s the location that Canelo’s manager/trainer Eddy Reynoso mentioned recently for where he wants the trilogy match with Golovkin to be staged.
Munguia is headlining this Saturday night against D’Mitrius Ballard (21-0-1, 13 KOs) on DAZN at the Plaza Monumental, Tijuana, Mexico. The fight was initially scheduled for last year, but it got pushed to 2022.
DAZN gave Munguia the green light to fight Ballard, even though he’s not well known, even to the hardcore boxing fans.
The fans who know of the 28-year-old Ballard remember him for his controversial 12 round draw against Yamaguchi Falcao in December 2019. It appeared that Falcao had done enough to deserve the win, but the judges unsurprisingly scored it as a draw.
In Ballard’s last fight, he defeated journeyman Paul Valenzuela Jr by a 10 round unanimous decision last December.
“I will try to get better with my work and with my combinations. It’s difficult because I am a fighter that wants to fight and give a spectacular performance. I like to throw punches all the time,” said Munguia.
“All the rivals are tough fighters, important, and they want my things, so it’ll be a good fight,” Munguia said when asked if it’s difficult for him to get motivated to fight the little-known non-world ranked D’Mitrius Ballard.
“I train the better way, and it’s not difficult for me [to get motivated for this fight]. He is a good coach [Erik Morales], and I try to learn every time. He will be in my corner, I think, all my career,” said Munguia.
The former WBO 154-lb champion Munguia is coming off a win over Gabe Rosado last November.
It was a good performance by Munguia against the 36-year-old Rosado, but it wasn’t the kind of name that he needed on his resume to show boxing fans that he deserves a fight with Golovkin or Canelo. Rosado has a lot of miles on the clock at this point in his career, and he’s not someone that you would think of as a fighter that would vault you into a massive payday fight against GGG.
