Although Jaime Munguia's focus is on defending his WBO junior middleweight title against Dennis Hogan on April 13, the rest of the boxing world is focusing on his future.
Munguia, who has turned into one of boxing's brightest young stars after beating Sadam Ali last year to win the WBO title, has always been looked as someone whose full potential could be realized by moving up in weight. As such, every fight featuring Munguia comes with various questions of a potential jump to middleweight.
The boxing world is currently looking at Munguia's middleweight future not a question of if, but when it will happen. In a recent conference call, the subject was brought up multiple times and Munguia confirmed that the jump to 160 pounds is coming. What's not certain is when, but it is expected to take place before 2020 ends.
"I do have plans to move up to 160 pounds, maybe next year or for the next fight or maybe by the end of the year. The truth is we are still saying that, but I feel good, and I feel good making 154 for this fight that I have on April 13th. But we are considering a move up to 160," Munguia said.
Munguia possesses superb punching power, especially for a 22-year-old fighter who is dominating and dropping world-class fighters such as Ali and Liam Smith. The true intrigue is his size and frame, which is well above average for a junior middleweight. Standing at an even 6-feet tall, Munguia admitted that it does take some work to make 154, but nothing too strenuous that would be cause for concern. But in Munguia's own words, moving up in weight is "inevitable."
Going to middleweight would surely create potential big fights against some of the other 160-pounders that are also fighting on DAZN. The list of middleweights that fight for the streaming service is extensive, with Canelo Alvarez, Daniel Jacobs, Gennady Golovkin, Demetrius Andrade and countless more having fought on DAZN or will soon have fights there.
"It does take some work to do it, but I’ve figured it out pretty well and gotten used to it, but it’s inevitable. I don’t know if it’s going to be for my next fight or by the end of the year, but I will be moving to 160 pounds," Munguia said.
Munguia vs. Smith is set to take place in Monterrey, Mexico on April 13 and it is set to headline a DAZN-streamed card.
