Canelo Alvarez did as expected last night as he continued his defence of the undisputed super-middleweight title.

The legendary Mexican fighter was a slight favourite over Jaime Munguia as the pair stepped into the ring last night. But he didn’t allow the pressure to take him off track and dropped his countryman in the fourth before handing him his first defeat on the scorecards.

Munguia was able to continue walking towards Alvarez through the 12 rounds, but never fully captured the champion’s respect over the 36 minutes. But he is expected to return, having improved his stock with his performance in what was a major step up.

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Canelo Alvarez heaps praise on Jaime Munguia despite comfortable win
The big criticism heading into last night’s event was that Munguia after 43 professional bouts had yet to face a legitimately top level fighter. But he showed his mettle against Canelo Alvarez, who admitted that he was a tough opponent for 12 rounds.

“I have a lot of experience,” Alvarez explained after the fact. “Munguia is a great fighter. He’s strong and smart. But I have 12 rounds to win the fight and I did. I did really good and I’m proud of it.

“He’s strong, but he’s a little slow. I could see every punch. That’s why I’m the best… I’m glad that I gave him this opportunity. Munguia is a great guy and a great champion. He’s going to have a great career. I’m very proud that the whole world is watching us Mexicans.”

Jaime Munguia guarantees that he will beat any other fighter than Canelo Alvarez
In order to chase Alvarez to an eventual fight, Munguia was forced to jump up two divisions from where he was initially world champion. But despite coming up short on this occasion, he is confident in his ability to compete at the world level.

“I came out strong and was winning the early rounds,” he told the press immediately after the fight. “I let my hands go, but he’s a fighter with a lot of experience. The loss hurts because it’s my first loss and I felt strong.

“There’s no doubt I would have beaten anyone else tonight. He has a lot of experience. I started well, but he’s a fighter who creates a lot of problems.”

Canelo Alvarez remains coy on future plans
While his immediate future is already booked in today with a trip to the golf course, Alvarez has not been so forthcoming with information about his next boxing outing. David Benavidez is in hot pursuit, but has been told he must come up with a $200million purse in order to earn the fight.

Alvarez has also guaranteed that he isn’t considering retirement, despite showing signs of slowing down in recent outings. He hasn’t stopped a fight since 2021, and has lost in that time when he attempted to move up to light-heavyweight for a second time against Dmitry Bivol.

“When I retire, my numbers will say what position I’m in,” he explained. “I know there’s a lot of great Mexican fighters in the past, but I’m the best fighting right now. I’m going to rest and enjoy my family.

“If the money is right, I can fight right now. I’ve fought everyone and I can do what I want.”

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