Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya talks to Fight Hub TV about the process of putting together the Canelo Alvarez vs. Jaime Munguia fight and why he thinks it’s the right time for Munguia to make his mark and take the torch from Canelo. Check out what De La Hoya had to say about taking this fight and how Munguia should approach it below.
De La Hoya on signing Canelo and PBC to fight Munguia
“There was a lot going on with PBC, with Amazon, whether Canelo was going to come back to DAZN. We just literally all came together as a joyful family and made it happen. Look, it’s obvious Canelo wasn’t going to fight Charlo. That would have been a disaster. Canelo for some strange reason wasn’t going to fight Benavidez.
“But our plan worked and we used some of that psychology and Jaime Munguia got the Canelo fight. So we’re all joyful, we’re excited… Jaime Munguia’s career was built on this moment and I think he’ll take advantage of it.
On whether his acrimonious relationship with Canelo made it tough to reach an agreement
“NO. There was obviously a lot of animosity, so you can imagine the negotiations. I have my people dealing with the other side, because obviously I can’t talk directly to (PBC) – I think I’m a threat or something, I don’t know.
“We made it happen and that’s all that matters and that’s what matters, and I think Amazon and DAZN and PBC and Canelo Promotions and Munguia and Golden Boy – we all made it happen and that’s what I keep preaching, is ” let all of you work together to make these great fights happen.”
On if PBC tried to cut him from promoting the fight
“There was a lot of shit, but we sorted it all out, we sorted it all out. They said, ‘Oh, Oscar can’t be a part of this.’ Fuck you, you know? What are you talking about, it’s my company. It’s Golden Boy, how can I not be there? So a little push, a little pull, you know, we got it all sorted out and I promised myself I wasn’t going to let my ego get in the way, but I wanted to be there this time, so I had to back off.”
On how Munguia takes on this fight at this point in his career
“I really think it’s a perfect, perfect opportunity. It literally is. When I watched John Ryder and Munguia up close, it was the first time I had Freddie in the corner, I saw a different Munguia from previous performances, where he was more on his toes, more striking, more patient… so now Freddie Roach can work on his defense, his combinations and his striking, and that’s going to be key.
“We couldn’t wait any longer. Some fans are saying, ‘he’s almost 50-0, when is he going to step up?’ Well, this is it. Here we go… we know when he’s ready, we know when he’s not, that’s our job. He’s ready. He’s in position now, this is his moment, this could be the changing of the guard on Cinco de Mayo.”
On Munguia’s key to defeating Canelo
“It’s about the footwork, because look, you’ve got a guy who’s 33, 34, and then you’ve got a teenage guy who’s 25, 26. So yeah, obviously he’s younger, he’s got fresher legs, he takes punches better, although Canelo has a good chin. But when you’ve got all that wear and tear under your belt, the armor tends to bend a little bit at that stage. So I’ve got to go with my guy, with Munguia.
“If they go to war, if they go to war for 12 rounds, I’m going to have to go with the younger guy because I think Freddie Roach has put Munguia in a position where he can box, if he wants to, he can stay on the outside and employ his jabs and his combinations. Look at Canelo’s footwork – obviously I’ve said this from the beginning – he moves like he’s on quicksand. So if you analyze his footwork, you can easily win this fight because every time Canelo comes forward, you know he’s going to throw something.
“There are a lot of little things that I’ve seen from the outside – of course I’m going to go to Munguia’s camp and support him and give him some advice… a lot of things are going our way, following Munguia’s way, which could give him a chance to win this fight.”