An all-Mexico championship clash is finally near the finish line.

The Ring has learned that a major hurdle has been cleared to move forward with the long-rumored Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez-Jaime Munguia undisputed super middleweight championship. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the clash is set to take place May 4 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) will present the event on Amazon Prime Pay-Per-View. DAZN will also be involved in some capacity through its PPV arm. However, The Ring has confirmed through multiple sources that it is not a true joint venture and that PBC/Amazon will take the lead. Alvarez will defend his Ring and undisputed WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO super middleweight championship.

The Ring has learned that a formal announcement is expected sometime next week.

ESPN Knockout’s Salvador ‘Chava’ Rodriguez was the first to report the current status on Alvarez-Munguia.

The development comes less than two weeks after Guadalajara’s Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 knockouts) briefly broke from PBC just eight months and one fight into their three-bout pact. The two sides were at an impasse on whom he could face for the planned May 4 date.

The Ring has confirmed that the newly formed agreement between Alvarez and PBC is just for the May 4 fight. It is not known whether there is an arrangement in writing to extend the deal. Sources inform The Ring that Alvarez will make more than the $35,000,000-per-fight guarantee from his previous contact, confirming a breaking news post from Fight Freak Unite’s Dan Rafael via social media.

Alvarez, The Ring 168-pound champion, signed with PBC last June, after which it was reported that his three-fight agreement included separate bouts with Jermell and Jermall Charlo. Alvarez faced and soundly defeated Jermell Charlo (35-2-1, 19 KOs) The Ring 154-pound champion, via unanimous decision last Sept. 30 at T-Mobile Arena.

The bout was uncompetitive and largely forgettable, to the point where any pre-fight thoughts of Alvarez facing both Charlos in succession were largely dulled in the aftermath.

Jermall Charlo ended a 29-month inactivity stretch with a ten-round, unanimous decision over Jose Benavidez Jr. Their November 25 non-title fight did not do anything to generate demand for an Alvarez-Jermall Charlo fight.

Still, Alvarez was adamant about next facing Jermall Charlo, the WBC middleweight titlist who would have moved up in weight for the fight. The Ring confirmed that PBC was reluctant to move forward with the fight for the asking price. Alvarez was guaranteed a minimum $35 million, plus compensation for the rest of the fighters on the show.

He will make more than that on May 4, in addition to what will by far serve as the best payday of Munguia’s career.

Tijuana’s Munguia (43-0, 34 KOs) emerged as the frontrunner to land the fight, despite prior reports that Alvarez would not face a Mexican in his next fight. The Ring has confirmed that talks were ongoing, uninterrupted for more than a month between Alvarez and Munguia’s teams directly. Golden Boy Promotions, Munguia’s co-promoter along with Zanfer Boxing since 2018, were not directly involved in talks but kept updated throughout the process, according to multiple sources.

The main dilemma was whether it would air on Amazon Prime or DAZN. Both platforms preferred the unbeaten No. 5-rated Ring contender over the other suggested options by Alvarez—Charlo on Prime, or Nuyorican contender Edgar Berlanga (22-0, 17 KOs) on DAZN.

A fight with Berlanga, No. 9 at 168, could still come into play for Alvarez’s targeted September 14 fight date, ahead of Mexican Independence Day weekend, though will no means be a priority. However, The Ring learned that Alvarez expressed interest after Berlanga’s sixth-round knockout of unbeaten Padraig McCrory on February 24 in Orlando, Florida.

Berlanga was named the WBA super middleweight mandatory challenger with the win. It was suggested at the time that he would satisfy a mandatory obligation for Alvarez, though later clarified by the WBA that he is actually the leading contender for WBA ‘Regular’ super middleweight titlist David Morrell (10-0, 9 KOs; No. 4 at 168 by Ring).

Munguia is ranked number-one by both the WBC and WBO. Neither have yet named him as the official challenger for either of those titles. Alvarez has made six defenses of The Ring championship and the WBA ‘Super’ and WBC titles. Four have come with the WBO belt at stake, three with the IBF.

Just two have satisfied ordered mandatory title defenses. Alvarez knocked out WBC No. 1 contender Avni Yildirim in the third round of their Feb. 2021 championship fight in Miami Gardens, Florida. His WBO obligation was met in a twelve-round, unanimous decision over England’s John Ryder last May 5 in Zapopan, Mexico.

The WBO previously told Munguia—through Golden Boy Promotions—that a mandatory title fight would not be ordered until later this December when it is due. Alvarez could still petition to have this fight qualify for that status.

David Benvidez (28-0, 24 KOs), No. 1 at 168, is the interim WBC 168-pound titlist and confirmed mandatory. However, the WBC has been reluctant to order the fight, to where Benavidez will move up in weight. He will next face Ukraine’s Oleksandr Gvozdyk (20-1, 16 KOs), No. 7 at 175 and a former WBC champ. The interim WBC light heavyweight title fight will likely take place on a June 15 PBC on Prime PPV show, though the date remains fluid.

Munguia emerged as the leading candidate to land boxing’s equivalent of the Powerball jackpot after his latest win. The former WBO 154-pound titlist looked spectacular in a ninth-round knockout of England’s John Ryder (32-7, 18 KOs) on January 27 at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Munguia immediately called for an all-Mexico clash with Alvarez during his post-fight interview, but was uncertain at the time if he would land that fight.

That dream has come true and will mark the first all-Mexico undisputed championship showdown in more than 52 years. The last such occasion was in March 1972, when Rafael Herrera knocked out ‘Rockabye’ Ruben Olivares in the eighth-round to win the Ring, WBC and WBA bantamweight championship.

Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
Follow @JakeNDaBox

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