No one saw this coming – least of all Jaime Munguia.
On Saturday, in what was meant to be something of a showcase fight at the Estadio Caliente in his hometown of Tijuana, Mexico, Munguia – a former junior middleweight titleholder – was stunned by France’s Bruno Surace in a sixth-round, one-punch knockout defeat.
Munguia, 44-2 (35 KOs), who only six months ago was undefeated and a hopeful author of his own Cinderella story before falling to Saul “Canelo Alvarez in a gritty decision loss in May, was caught by the supposedly light-hitting and unheralded Surace, 26-0-2 (5 KOs), in a performance that will earn consideration on Knockout of the Year and Upset of the Year lists across boxing.
The finish was as abrupt as it was unexpected. Munguia, 28, had dropped Surace on a counter left hook in the second round, thrilling the hometown crowd and seemingly signaling what could be an early exit for Surace, a 26-year-old from Marseille whose previous most notable win had come in a stoppage of little-known 11-fight veteran Jhon Jader Obregon. Surace hadn’t fought since.
So when he rose to his feet and hung on through the end of the second, there might have been some surprise throughout Estadio Caliente.
But Tijuana hadn’t seen anything yet.
In the sixth, with Surace showing no overt signs of turning the tide against Munguia and the visiting opponent – who had never before fought outside of France – covering up with his back against the ropes, Munguia let fly a left uppercut and a pawing follow-up left in hopes of prying open Sarace’s guard.
But while sizing up his work, Munguia left his hands perilously wide. Surace, sensing an opening, poked a jab that seemed to be just enough to block his opponent’s view before immediately following behind it with a one-in-a-million right hand that landed flush on the chin of Munguia, who crumbled onto his. He tried to clamber to his feet, but he was counted out by the referee – at a time of 2 minutes and 36 seconds in the sixth – before he could gather his bearings.
That Surace had only five career knockouts coming into the fight and is considered a natural middleweight made the outcome all the more shocking.
“I know that he is an excellent boxer. So, we worked on our counter punches," Surace said. "He is a true warrior. I want to thank him for the opportunity. This was a big experience for me.”
Suddenly, the future looks incredibly hazy for Munguia, who has had 46 fights, losing two of his past three – including a physically punishing defeat to Alvarez. Because a rematch is likely Surace’s most attractive next step, Munguia can likely count on that.
“Middleweight is my true weight class,” Sarace said. “But we’ll see if [a rematch] can happen.”
Munguia should at least get the chance to prove whether he’s a shot fighter or simply the victim of a lucky one. But Saturday’s staggering result means it’s now impossible to even speculate, despite Munguia’s seemingly high standing in the sport only hours ago, which might now be the case.