What To Know
- It took until the co-main event to deliver a thriller fitting of Halloween and Dia De Los Muertos in Riyadh on Saturday, thanks to Jaime Munguia and Daniel Zon.
- Munguia and Zon stole the show in a competitive contest with a Round of the Year candidate.
- Rafael Espinoza and Reito Tsutsumi weren’t in the ring long. Both should pursue a quick return in 2027.
Jaime Munguia Gets A Scare From Nikita Zon
Jaime Munguia of Tijuana, Mexico (47-2, 35 KOs) survived his first title defense against a tougher-than-expected Nikita Zon of Russia (12-1-1, 10 KOs), retaining his WBA World Super Middleweight title.
That sentence makes it seem like an easy day at the office, doesn’t it? But it was far from the walkover fans expected from Munguia against a little-known opponent with no fights outside Russia against significant opposition.
Through the first half, Munguia was on the brink of being stopped by the whirling dervish Zon. But Munguia bit down on the gumshield and pulled again to a decision win. Score were 117-111 twice, and 116-112.
“I’m very happy. I’m very honored for this opportunity. Yeah, it was a little complicated. It was kind of sticky there for a little bit, but I pulled it off, and that’s why it’s important, and it’s part of the growth,” said a relieved Munguia.
Zon Came For More Than A Payday
Zon didn’t come to lay down for a payday. It took Munguia a few rounds to get used to what he was seeing from the awkward-looking Russian. But when Munguia deciphered how to get to the body, he began gaining ground. At the end of round two, Zon caught Munguia with an uppercut, and Munguia had to cover up to the end of the round.
Trainer Eddy Reynoso admonished Munguia. “He’s way too slow to be hitting you like that. You’ve got to focus!” The fight continued down a bumpy round, with both fighters trading shots and rounds on the card.
READ MORE: Mexico vs the World Early Action: World 4, Mexico 1
Munguia vs Zon Round 6: Round of the Year
Round six will go down as a 2026 Round of the Year nominee, something no one would have predicted with a 15-to-1 favorite in Munguia.
Zon hurt Munguia with a wicked left uppercut, followed by right hooks. Munguia fired back using his offense as his defense. He rocked Zon, and both continued to trade, both emptying their reserves to stay in the fight.
Veteran Nevada referee Tony Weeks was hovering nearby. He looked about to step in several times, but he kept his power dry. Weeks has taken heat for premature stoppages, most recently between Rolly Romero and Ismael Barroso. It must have been in his mind while watching Munguia and Zon. Zon was a whisker away from a second upset win over Munguia, following the knockout by Bruno Serace.
Both men looked one hard shot away from getting wiped out. That kind of tension makes a fight exciting for fans.
Later, Munguia described what happened from his perspective. “Well, he caught me, and then I caught him, and then I just got careless, and then he caught me again.
“But that’s part of the process. That’s part of learning, and I just depended on the kind of work that I did, and that’s part of my growth,” said Munguia.
Munguia made an impressive recovery between rounds. From there, Munguia buckled down and pulled away on the scorecards. He was still feeling some heat, but his hand wasn’t burning on the stove anymore.
Munguia found one last chance to end the fight early with a body shot that hurt Zon, but it was near the end of the 11th round, and he ran out of time.
“I would give myself a six, seven out of 10. There were a few things that failed. There were a few things that I did not do, but I’m happy with my win, and I’m just going to go back and keep working,” said Munguia.
Munguia Calls Out Martinez
Zon, age 32, suffered his first defeat but won plenty of new fans and recognition for his performance. This is why underdogs who believe in their skills take these opportunities. He will get more opportunities from this loss than his anonymous wins in Russia.
Munguia called out WBC World Super Middleweight champion Lester Martinez who was ringside in Riyadh, saying ‘you’re next my friend.’ It’s a fight sure to be a blockbuster in Southern California in 2027.
Brief Return for Rafael Espinoza – Unification Ahead?
After a year out of the ring, it was disappointing when Rafael Espinoza could only manage three rounds before his fight was stopped.
The WBO World Featherweight champion Espinoza of Mexico (29-0, 25 KOs) faced a late replacement opponent, Ricardo Blandon of Nicaragua (21-7, 14 KOs).
Like most of the 6-foot-1 champion’s opponents, Espinoza towered over Blandon. He showed no ring rust, with no concern about what was coming at him from Blandon. But Blandon was giving it his best. He was losing but he wasn’t being destroyed (at least not yet).
In round three, Blandon suffered a cut over the left eye. It wasn’t a good situation, but we have all seen far worse cuts. The ringside physician, Dr. Neil Scott of the British Boxing Board of Control, wanted to take a look. With less than a minute left in the round in a championship fight, the physician told referee Janny Guzman to call off the fight at 2:22 of the round.
Look at the cut. Would you have stopped the fight?
It seemed too early to call off a fight at this level, with Blandon still holding his own in the fight and with no chance for the cutman to address the cut. Dr. Scott’s credentials are impeccable and he has experience at the highest level. It didn’t stop the armchair experts from complaining.
With the anticipated move to featherweight by pound-for-pound great Naoya Inoue, the current featherweight champions are all waiting for the opportunity to face him. None want to risk losing in a unification fight before Inoue chooses his first opponent. It’s frustrating when featherweights should be working toward an undisputed champion.
With lots of time between the end of the Espinoza fight and the start of the co-main event, boxing observers and the broadcast commentators criticized the champions including Bruce Carrington and Angelo Leo for not facing each other.
Carrington immediately protested on social media, saying he’s the only one in the division calling out opponents. “Don’t put me in a box with the rest of them. I been saying it BEFORE I even became champion and they was ducking because I was “too big of a risk.” LETS UNIFY” wrote Carrington.
At least the fans got a song out of El Divino.
Reito Tsutsumi Is For Real
Featherweight prospect Reito Tsutsumi made his first scheduled ten-round appearance. Raymundo Rojas Garcia gave it a game try, but he was only good for two of those ten rounds. Tsutsumi of Osaka, Japan (6-0, 5 KOs) took it to Garcia of Mexico (16-3, 11 KOs) with an impressive display of his power, forcing the referee to step in at 2:22 of the second round.
From the first hard left hook that landed 30 seconds into the fight, everyone watching knew where this fight was going. Tsutsumi has exceptionally broad, muscled shoulders, and he puts his full effort behind each punch. He’s as good a body puncher as anyone short of Naoya Inoue or Bam Rodriguez.
Still, Tsutsumi was hard on himself after the fight. “Even though I could win and I’m very happy for the result, I just put too much strength into my fight. So, maybe next time I will do better,” he said through an interpreter, explaining he wants to focus on details beyond power.
“Later, I will watch my own fight, and then I will see what I need to improve for my next fight.”
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist with more than four dozen awards for both written and video coverage from the Boxing Writers Association of America, Society of Professional Journalists, and San Diego Press Club, where she is the past president. She is the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the BWAA. She is the Boxing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.
