LAS VEGAS -- The middleweight title fight between Gennady Golovkin and Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez on Sept. 15 won't be the only one on that HBO pay-per-view card. The co-feature will also be a title fight from the junior middleweight division when Jaime Munguia (30-0, 25 KOs) makes the second defense of his WBO strap against Brandon Cook (20-1, 13 KOs).
Munguia, who fights out of the orthodox stance, is just 21 years old but has already announced himself as a dangerous puncher. What makes him so dangerous is that he has plus power in both hands. He loves to plow forward and doesn't mind getting tagged a few times as long as he can land his power punches. While he does have a pretty good jab it is his left hook and right hand that do the most damage. The left hook can hurt opponents to the body or upstairs and his right hand can turn your lights out. Defensively he isn't great but the fact that he's a big junior middleweight helps him absorb some punishment.
When Munguia was floated as a possible replacement opponent for Golovkin after Alvarez tested positive for a banned substance many fans scoffed. He was relatively unknown and the fight never got approved. That turned out to be a blessing for Munguia who instead took on Sadam Ali, dropping him four times on route to a fourth round knockout, and leaving with his WBO title. Munguia made the first defense of that title just two months ago when he went the full 12 against Liam 'Beefy' Smith en route to a wide unanimous decision win. Now Munguia will look to continue his good fortunes by handling business against Cook.
Cook is also an orthodox fighter and while he has good power he is nowhere near the puncher that Munguia is. Cook doesn't have great footwork and typically stands in front of his opponent. What Cook does well is quickly load up on his punches and he really sits down on them. He can surprise opponents with a short left hook and also throws a mean overhand right. However, Cook could have his hands full because his lone loss came by the way of knockout and since he doesn't use his legs much he will be a stationary target for Munguia.
Despite being 32 years old, Cook has only been fighting professionally for seven years. He has also never fought for a world title and has never faced anyone near the level of Munguia. Beating Munguia would be far and away the biggest victory of Cook's career and would take him from unknown fighter to world champion.
Munguia loves to come forward and Cook usually doesn't use his legs much so this fight could easily look like it's taking place in a phone booth. Cook will really need to stay busy and use his jab as often as possible. He needs to catch Munguia coming on and then land power punches when he does get inside. As for Munguia he just needs to apply the pressure and make sure he digs to Cook's body. The problem for Cook is that Munguia is a much bigger puncher so if he gets drawn into a slugfest he might pay the price.
PREDICTION: Brandon Cook is a fairly unknown fighter who mostly fights in Canada. After this fight Cook will still be mostly unknown because Jaime Munguia is going to dominate this fight. He's fresh from his last bout and he is going to knock Cook out in the eighth round.
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| Munguia catching Liam 'Beefy' Smith with a left hook |
When Munguia was floated as a possible replacement opponent for Golovkin after Alvarez tested positive for a banned substance many fans scoffed. He was relatively unknown and the fight never got approved. That turned out to be a blessing for Munguia who instead took on Sadam Ali, dropping him four times on route to a fourth round knockout, and leaving with his WBO title. Munguia made the first defense of that title just two months ago when he went the full 12 against Liam 'Beefy' Smith en route to a wide unanimous decision win. Now Munguia will look to continue his good fortunes by handling business against Cook.
Cook is also an orthodox fighter and while he has good power he is nowhere near the puncher that Munguia is. Cook doesn't have great footwork and typically stands in front of his opponent. What Cook does well is quickly load up on his punches and he really sits down on them. He can surprise opponents with a short left hook and also throws a mean overhand right. However, Cook could have his hands full because his lone loss came by the way of knockout and since he doesn't use his legs much he will be a stationary target for Munguia.
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| Cook landing an accurate right hand |
Munguia loves to come forward and Cook usually doesn't use his legs much so this fight could easily look like it's taking place in a phone booth. Cook will really need to stay busy and use his jab as often as possible. He needs to catch Munguia coming on and then land power punches when he does get inside. As for Munguia he just needs to apply the pressure and make sure he digs to Cook's body. The problem for Cook is that Munguia is a much bigger puncher so if he gets drawn into a slugfest he might pay the price.
PREDICTION: Brandon Cook is a fairly unknown fighter who mostly fights in Canada. After this fight Cook will still be mostly unknown because Jaime Munguia is going to dominate this fight. He's fresh from his last bout and he is going to knock Cook out in the eighth round.
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