Not many fighters have the guts to admit at the end of a world title fight that the decision could have been a draw but Jaime Munguia (33-0, 26 KO's), the WBO Junior Middleweight Champion did and he should be given credit for it. Most fighters would never do that, but that is the difference between them and him.
“Honestly, once the fight ended I thought it was going to end in a draw,” Munguia said after what was a major scare to the young champion.
But if you think like the true boxers of this generation, Hogan did make the champion look bad and did catch him with some good shots, but he did not drop him or overwhelm him in the fight. And that means the win goes to the champion whether you like it or not and that is the way it should always be.
Before the fight, Munguia was not over confident, but Hogan did make it clear by his demeanor that he was.
Munguia was supposed to have come into this fight with better defense, but it was evident throughout the fight that his trainer either didn't do his job or Hogan didn't allow it to happen. It was probably a combination of both, but Munguia definitely needs to improve on his defense.
Throughout the fight, Hogan was on the move, which didn't allow Munguia to plant his feet and drop the bombs he can do on stationary fighters.
Hogan came into the fight with the perfect plan, which was be first, stick and move, hold and frustrate the puncher, and that is exactly what he did.
“I learned a lot about fighting through frustration,” Munguia admitted. “It was similar to what happened in my last fight. I was also a bit fatigued. Making weight could have contributed to that.”
Munguia was never able to cut the ring off until the later rounds but it was too late and it was evident that he and his corner were very worried about how close the fight was.
In the tenth round, Hogan even landed a solid punch that rocked Munguia back on his heels, which would have dropped the average fighter, but Munguia kept his balance and took the punch well.
Either Munguia needs to upgrade on his defense by keeping his hands up more, which would have helped because Hogan kept landing punches to the head over and over, or he needs a new defensive trainer.
Having fought at home for his first defense of his title, Munguia was evidently embarrassed but was very grateful to have won the fight. On the other hand, two of the judges should be ashamed for the ridiculous score cards against the game Hogan and his team, but they aren't.
“I know I won the fight,” an upset Hogan said afterwards. “I’m so disappointed. I came here on good faith. Everyone knows I won. It’s bad for boxing. If there’s a rematch offered, I’ll accept it straightaway. His power didn’t phase me at all. I knew in his eyes, he knew he was losing. I was landing more throughout the fight. Everybody knows,”Hogan said.
