Munguia Eyes Berlanga; Must Beat Erik Bazinyan First

Jaime Munguia is targeting a fight with Edgar Berlanga next year. 

Munguia bounced back from his previous defeat against Canelo Alvarez after overcoming Erik Bazinyan in his last bout. He stopped his man in the tenth round to return to winning ways. That was his first fight since signing with Top Rank following his departure from Golden Boy Promotions. Munguia left Golden Boy Promotions after the Canelo fight. The departure was very telling since Canelo warned Munguia about Oscar De La Hoya allegedly stealing from fighters. Munguia will face Bruno Surace in his next bout on December 14.

Munguia Vs. Berlanga

Meanwhile, Berlanga is coming off a loss against Canelo. It was the first defeat of his career, as he was dominated in a one-sided unanimous decision loss. Although Berlanga got off the canvas to make it to the final bell, he was heavily criticized for essentially trying to survive. Berlanga lasted the 12 rounds but was heavily punished in the process. He also embraced Canelo after the fight, calling him his idol. Some in the boxing community questioned whether Berlanga really believed he could win. Berlanga made things worse when he was seen celebrating in Mexico.

Although the boxer justified that by saying he has fans in Mexico, it made Berlanga look as though he was just happy to be in the ring with Canelo. Oscar De La Hoya also ripped Berlanga’s reaction to his loss. Berlanga has been linked with a fight against Caleb Plant. However, Munguia wants to face the Puerto Rican instead. It could be another blockbuster event.

The Canelo-Berlanga fight sold 650,000 PPVs, bringing in a live gate of $17 million. While that was largely due to Canelo, it also showed that Mexican Independence Weekend was critical. Boxing fans ultimately saw Mexico take on Puerto Rico as the event was went head-to-head against UFC 306, the first combat sports event at The Sphere. That is the fight Munguia wants as he mocked Berlanga’s reaction to his Canelo loss. 

Munguia Reacts

“I don’t know what to say. I don’t celebrate a loss. [And] I work hard so I can learn. So, for me, I think it’s ridiculous to celebrate a loss. I respect him as a fighter, but I think it looks ridiculous to celebrate a loss. Let’s do that fight. It would be a good fight for next year. So, let’s do it. It’s not the main goal [to Fight Berlanga].

“There’s Caleb Plant, and Mbilli, who is with Top Rank. First, we have this commitment on December 14th [against Bruno Surace in Tijuana], If all goes well, we want to have a great fight next year. We have to see what the people want. I think the better fight is with Berlanga. I think people will like that fight. There are a lot of fights at 168, but we will see what the public wants,” Munguia stated 

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