Saul Canelo Alvarez vs Jamie Munguia: Las Vegas fight analysis

A Canelo fight week always has a lot of buzz, and this one has been no different.

He had an astonishing run-in with his former promoter Oscar de la Hoya, who is representing opponent Jaime Munguia.

It got really bad. Canelo used all kinds of unsavoury language – starting off in Spanish before switching to English. Maybe he felt the translator was toning it down.

De la Hoya asked for respect, saying he had “built” Canelo. The fighter replied by contending De la Hoya had invested in him because he had a name, and had never lost a penny on that investment.

The hatred appears real and was intense.

Away from the politics, Canelo has a real fight on his hands on Saturday. Munguia is a live dog and maybe the hardest puncher Canelo has faced in a long time.

There were calls from the boxing public for Canelo to face a different Mexican instead – the hard-hitting David Benavidez.

But what am I missing about Munguia which doesn’t make him a worthy opponent? It is not an outrageous match-up. It’s two Mexicans. We cannot go wrong.

When Munguia gets hit, something goes off. We saw Munguia’s power against John Ryder – a guy who took Canelo the distance last year.

Benavidez is on a high with lots of knockouts and it’s not like Canelo is saying he will be done after Munguia. I truly believe the Benavidez fight will happen – just not right now.