A spectacular showdown was seen tonight at the Plaza Monumental de Playas de Tijuana between two undefeated fighters Jaime Munguia (39-0, 31 KOs) “The Pride of Tijuana” taking on D’Mitrius “Big Meech” Ballard (21-1-1, 13 KOs) Prince George City, Maryland. The raging fighters stepped into the ring not losing any time as they each took turns using their jab, trying to dictate the pace of the fight. Munguia successfully cornered Ballard visibly hurting him in the second round. In the third round, Munguia saw an opportunity and knocked down Ballard with a body shot. Ballard eventually got up after spending a few seconds on the canvas, but was quickly dispatched by Munguia at the 1:47 mark of the fight.
“I want to thank everyone for their support today. It was a dream of mine to fight here, in from of the people that saw me grow up and develop as a fighter. We came well prepared for this fight and my performance today proved it. I knew that I was going to be the one to apply pressure and I went in there and did my job. D’Mitrius did have some power, that surprised me, but after the second round, Erik Morales advised me to apply more pressure, throw more combinations. It paid off, I dropped him with a good liver shot and decided to just go for it and ended the fight,” said Jaime Munguia
“I felt I prepared well for Munguia today, but his power surprised me. I couldn’t find my rhythm and apply my jab. Now we have to go back to the gym, keep working, and figure out what comes next,” said D’Mitrius Ballard.
In the co-main event of the night, Mexico’s undefeated rising star, William “Camaron” Zepeda (25-0, 23 KOs) of San Mateo Atenco, Mexico, showed off why he is considered to be one of the most dangerous fighters in the lightweight division when he took on Luis “Bofo” Viedas (29-12-1, 10 KOs) of Tijuana, Mexico. Viedas had an awkward style, as charged headfirst a few times, causing him to slip several times throughout the fight. Zepeda chased him around, knocking him down twice in the second round and twice in the third round, with the referee calling the fight when he failed to get up at the 1:51 mark.
“He had a very dirty style of boxing, he kept coming forward, lunging in an awkward way,” said William Zepeda. “But fortunately, we were able to do our job today and got the victory.”
In one of the most entertaining fights of the night, Diego “Azabache” Torres (14-0, 13 KOs) from Zapopan, Mexico, went the distance for the first time in his career when he faced fellow countryman Jonathan “Perita” Escobedo Martinez (8-3-1, 2 KOs). The 10-round super lightweight fight had the crowd cheering all night as both fighters went after each other with devastating blows that left Escobedo Martinez with two cuts, one above the left eye and another below the right. That was a result of Torres Nunez’s effect and powerful jab, which he utilized heavily in the first few rounds of the fight. In the fifth round, the referee took a time out to examine the cut above the left eye, with the doctor ruling him ‘ok’ to continue. Torres Nunez took a knee in the sixth round, but the referee ruled it a slip. Escobedo Martinez was out for blood after the referee’s ruling, as he cornered Torrez Nunez a few times, visibly hurting him. Torres Nunez had a point deducted in the eighth round as he continued to lose his mouth guard. Both fighters were visibly tired and worn down by the 10th round, as they closed out the fight to the applause of the attendees. Ultimately, Torres Nunez was crowned the victor via unanimous decision with scores of 97-92, 98-91, 97-92 as fight fans gave his opponent a standing ovation for his brave performance.
Opening the DAZN broadcasts, undefeated Rafael “El Divino” Espinoza (18-0, 15 KOs) of Guadalajara, Mexico, took on Alie “Demolition Man” Laurel (18-7-1, 11 KOs) of Manila, Philippines. The scheduled 10-round featherweight only lasted a round after Espinoza knocked down Laurel twice in the first round, winning by technical knockout at the 1:30 mark.
Christian Olivo (19-0-1, 7KOs) of Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico faced Guadalajara’s Miguel Mateos (12-5, 7KOs) in a 6-round featherweight fight. Both fighters were willing participants as they both took turns throwing combination at each other to the applause and cheers of the crowd. The fight went the distance with Olivo winning the fight via unanimous decision with scores of 60-54 from all three judges.
Also, part of the non-broadcasted fight card Jorge “Chino” Garcia (23-3, 19 KOs) of Los Mochis, Mexico, defeated Sinaloa’s Jesus “Dengue” Nunez Rodriguez (19-9-2, 13 KOs) via a debilitating body shot in the third round. The fight was originally scheduled to be a an 8-round super welterweight fight
Argi Cortes (22-2-2, 10 KOs) of Mexico City defeated Mario Andrade (16-15-7, 5 KOs) via unanimous decision in a lively 6-round flyweight fight.
In the second fight of the night the undefeated Evan Sanchez (10-0, 6 KOs) of Parlier, California, defeated Abraham “Pitbull” Juarez (19-9, 8 KOs) of Mexico City, Mexico. The scheduled 6-round super welterweight event went the distance with Sanchez declared the victor via unanimous decision.
Opening up the night of boxing at Plaza Monumental de Playas, Monterrey’s Arely “Ametralladora” Mucino (31-3-2, 11KOs) took on Marisol Sanchez (12-5, 5 KOs) of Chiapas, Mexico, in an scheduled 8-round flyweight fight. Muncino charged at Sanchez early, hurting her in the second round and winning in the second round by technical knockout.
Munguia vs. Ballard was a 12-round fight for the WBO Intercontinental Middleweight Title presented by Golden Boy in association with Zanfer Boxing. The fight was sponsored by “BetOnline – Your Online Sportsbook Experts.” The fight will took place on Saturday, February 19 at Plaza Monumental de Playas de Tijuana, in Tijuana, Mexico and streamed live exclusively on DAZN worldwide, excluding Mexico.
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