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By: Hans Themistode
Jaime Munguia didn’t hesitate in the slightest when he was approached with an opportunity of a lifetime.
In 2018, Gennadiy Golovkin began gearing up for his highly-anticipated showdown against Canelo Alvarez. Just a few months prior, in September of 2017, Golovkin believed he was given a raw deal when he first squared off against Alvarez. Although their contest was ruled a split decision draw, both sides agreed to run things back immediately.
But, with roughly a month remaining before their sequel, Alvarez was slapped with a six-month suspension due to a positive drug test for the banned substance clenbuterol. With Alvarez out of the picture, Golovkin attempted to take on the undefeated Jaime Munguia. Although the Mexican native was more than willing to step in on short notice, the Nevada State Athletic Commission refused to sanction their bout due to a combination of Munguia’s age and lack of experience at the top level.
Since then, things have changed mightily in the life of Munguia. At 25 years of age, the Mexican product has registered several highlight-reel level knockout victories and faced stiffer competition. Munguia was also the proud owner of the WBO 154 pound crown and is now considered a top middleweight contender.
At the age of 40, Golovkin has seemingly slowed down. The current IBF middleweight champion has produced several up and down results since picking up his first defeat to Alvarez in their rematch. Still, despite Golovkin showing his boxing mortality as of late, Munguia believes that a showdown between them would produce mouthwatering results.
“Yes, I was interested then and I’m still interested now,” said Munguia to a group of reporters. “It would be a fun fight and people would like it. It would be an entertaining fight.”
Before Munguia can begin fixating on a possible showdown against Golovkin, he’ll first need to handle business against undefeated contender D’Mitrius Ballard. The two are slated to face off on February 19th. Should Munguia do what many are expecting, he may turn his attention towards the current IBF belt holder.
As for Golovkin, the 40-year-old could return to the negotiating tables with Munguia, provided he adds more gold to his waist first. Originally, the future Hall of Famer was set to take on fellow middleweight champion Ryota Murata on December 29th, at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, Murata’s home turf.
But while Golovkin was placing the finishing on an arduous training camp and preparing to hit the road, his showdown against Murata was postponed due to the rising concern surrounding the omicron COVID-19 variant. In order to prevent an outbreak, Japan implanted a new travel ban that prevented foreigners from visiting.
Although news of a fresh deal hasn’t surfaced, promoter Eddie Hearn believes the pair could face off in either March or April.
