Canelo Alvarez Turns Away Jaime Munguia, Retains RING and Undisputed 168-Pound Championship

05/05/2024 06:48

The only thing that Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez couldn't do was make good on his guarantee of a knockout.

He didn't really need to, on a night where the four-division champion reminded the world why he is among the sport's all-time greats. Guadalajara's Alvarez dropped countryman Jaime Munguia in the third round en route to a unanimous decision victory. Scores were 117-111, 116-111 and 115-112 for the reigning RING and undisputed 168-pound king atop a PBC on Prime/PPV.com Pay-Per-View event Saturday evening at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Munguia took advantage of Alvarez's traditional slow start and controlled the opening round largely on the strength of his jab. Alvarez threw just eleven punches in the first three minutes but never rattled and fought with confidence that he would quickly turn the tide.

True to form, Alvarez went to work in round two. Munguia stuck with what worked in the opening frame but Alvarez was able to land in combination. A body shot earlier set up the attack by the defending champion. Munguia responded with a bushel of punches, most of which were blocked.

Munguia went with straight volume in the third. It was always his best—if not only—shot at an upset and he seized his moment in the final 90 seconds of the round. Alvarez's stellar defense picked off most of the incoming and countered a left hook with a right uppercut. Munguia rode it out and drove Alvarez to a corner where he connected with a clean combination.

Reality would soon set in, however.

Alvarez delivered the lone knockdown on the night. Munguia left his chin exposed long enough to get clipped with a right uppercut. The sequence sent down the unbeaten Tijuana native for the first time in his career. Munguia beat the count but was never able to rediscover his early rhythm.

Meanwhile, Alvarez grew increasingly accurate in his economic approach. Munguia continued to throw more punches but Alvarez landed more and at a much higher percentage.

Alvarez connected with a double left hook at the start of the sixth. Munguia attempted to respond but missed with most of his punches. A similar pattern played out in the seventh, as Munguia's punches lacked steam.

Momentum shifted in round nine. Munguia connected with a right hand and a left hook upstairs. Alvarez's granite chin withstood the damage, though he was slowed later in the round by an inadvertent low blow. Munguia was warned for the infraction while Alvarez was cautioned by referee Thomas Taylor to not retaliate.

Alvarez slammed home a right hand to open the tenth round. It was a brutal reality check that Munguia was suddenly reduced to a puncher's chance. It wasn't going to happen in a fight where his power did not have any real effect.

Munguia let his hands go in the eleventh round. Most missed the mark once again, though his activity resonated with the judges. The final scores gave credit to Munguia's punch output, although he landed at a much lower percentage. Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 knockouts) landed 234-of-536 total punches (43.7%), including nearly half of his power shots (151-of-304, 49.7%).

The only thing Alvarez could not deliver in the end was a knockout. Instead, he goes the distance for the fifth straight time.

Munguia (43-1, 34 KOs) suffered both his first knockdown and lone defeat, albeit in a valiant effort.

Alvarez made the seventh defense of his RING super middleweight championship and at least two alphabet titles. It was his fourth defense of the undisputed championship, the most by any male fighter in the four-belt era.

Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.

Follow @JakeNDaBox

The post Canelo Alvarez Turns Away Jaime Munguia, Retains RING and Undisputed 168-Pound Championship appeared first on The Ring.