Jaime Munguía reclaims WBA 168 title, beats Armando Reséndiz by unanimous decision in Las Vegas
- Jaime Munguía beat Armando Reséndiz by unanimous decision on May 2 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, taking the WBA super middleweight title. - The judges had it wide — 120-108, 119-109 and 117-111 — in a fight Munguía controlled early and never really lost. - It gives Munguía a second-division belt and a clean comeback moment after losing to Canelo and fighting through drug-test controversy.
Boxing is the easy part here. The harder part is what a win is supposed to mean after a career gets messy. On Saturday, May 2, Jaime Munguía handled Armando Reséndiz over 12 rounds in Las Vegas and left with the WBA super middleweight belt — a clear, wide decision and the biggest reset of his career in years. That matters because Munguía has spent the last stretch stuck between almost-elite status, a loss to Canelo Álvarez, and the kind of controversy that makes every next step feel provisional. (boxingscene.com) ### What exactly happened? Munguía beat Reséndiz by unanimous decision at T-Mobile Arena on the Benavidez-Ramírez undercard. The cards were not close in the aggregate — 120-108, 119-109, and 117-111 — and that tells the story pretty well. Reséndiz had moments of effort and pressure, but Munguía was sharper, cleaner, and more organized from the start. (boxingscene.com) ### Why do the scorecards matter? Because they separate “won a title fight” from “took over a title fight.” A 120-108 card means one judge gave Munguía every round. Even the widest disagreement among the judges still had him comfortably ahead. Basically, this was not a disputed decision or a late escape — it was the kind of result that says one fighter solved the other. (boxingscene.com) ### Was Reséndiz supposed to be a soft touch? Not really. Reséndiz came in as the WBA titleholder after upsetting Caleb Plant, which was treated as one of boxing’s bigger surprises of 2025. He was also making the first defense of that belt. But the catch is that winning a title in an upset and defending it against a(boxingscene.com)ence, and it showed. (ringmagazine.com) ### Why is this such a big deal for Munguía? Because this win does two things at once. First, it makes him a two-division titleholder after his earlier run at junior middleweight. Second, it gives him a clean headline after a rough patch that had started to define him more than his actual boxing. One sharp performance can’t erase everything, but it can change the conversation fast. (boxingscene.com) ### What rough patch are we talking about? Munguía lost to Canelo in May 2024, which didn’t ruin his reputation by itself — plenty of good fighters lose to Canelo. The bigger problem was what came after. Reséndiz’s team had publicly pushed for VADA testing ahead of this fight, and the matchup arrived with that cloud(boxingscene.com)ility repair job. (ringmagazine.com) ### Why was Canelo ringside? That part made the scene a little stranger. Canelo was at ringside cheering Munguía on, even though Munguía is both a former opponent and now a belt-holder in Canelo’s old division. If Canelo wants to rebuild toward undisputed at 168, Munguía is no longer just a familiar name — he’s an obstacle with a title. (boxingnewsonline.net) ### So where does 168 go now? The division is fragmented. Terence Crawford’s retirement and the belt reshuffling left different pieces in different hands, and Munguía just grabbed one of the most visible ones. That means more leverage, better fight options, and a path back into the center of the super middleweight picture instead of orbiting it. (boxingnewsonline.net) ### Bottom line Munguía did not just win. He looked settled, disciplined, and fully in control — which is exactly what he needed. In boxing, redemption stories usually sound dramatic. This one looked simpler than that. He showed up, boxed well for 12 rounds, and took a belt home. (boxingscene.com)
