Freddie Roach, a renowned boxing trainer, has praised Jaime Munguia's skills as he prepares for his upcoming match. Munguia is set to face Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas during the Cinco de Mayo weekend celebrations. Roach highlighted improvements in both offense and defense, essential for this high-stakes bout.
Roach has trained Munguia at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles focusing on aspects like defense, offense, head movement, and counterattacks. He expressed satisfaction with Munguia’s progress over two training camps. "I’ve had two training camps with [Munguia]. The first, he was the best student in the world – he listens very well, and I was working with him on his defense and his offense, and he became more of a complete fighter... He’s a good fighter, he listens very well. I train him in the gym and I train him hard, and it’s worked out well," said Roach.
Previously in January, Munguia secured a victory against John Ryder by winning in the ninth round showcasing his improved fighting prowess. This upcoming fight against Alvarez poses a different challenge. Roach devised strategies tailored for Alvarez’s predictable style. He noted, "[Alvarez] has very common combinations. He’ll throw a left hook to the body, a left hook to the head. Every time. Every time you get one, you get two."
Relations between Roach and key figures in boxing have seen changes over the years. His connection with Oscar De La Hoya saw mending after tensions post-2007 only reconciling after 2008’s Pacquiao fight. “Oscar didn’t talk to me for a long time but he talks to me now,” remarked Roach elaborating on their improved communications.
Fernando Beltran played a crucial role as co-promoter by facilitating Jaime Munguia's training with Freddie Roach contributing significantly to readiness for this fight. Munguia himself remains highly motivated and keen on proving himself in what he describes as a dream come true match-up against Alvarez. "Let’s see what happens in the ring. We’re going to try and do an intelligent fight – that’s our plan," said Munguia.
