Jaime Munguia Envisions Difficult, Risky Fight vs. Ryder: I’m Not Taking Him Lightly, 2024 Is My Year

Jaime Munguia is more than ready to step up the competition after years of fighting sub-par opponents. 

Before his barnburner bout and fight of the year win against Sergiy Derevyanchenko in June, arguably the best win of Munguia's career until then was a 2018 decision victory against Liam Smith. 

The 27-year-old Munguia (42-0, 33 KOs) is ready to continue his series of step-up fights on Jan. 27 when he takes on John Ryder (32-6, 18 KOs) at the Footprint Center in Phoenix on DAZN.

Ryder is coming off a loss to Canelo Alvarez, and Munguia envisions a scenario where a knockout win will help stage an all-Mexican showdown versus Canelo Alvarez.

“2024 is my year,” Munguia told BoxingScene.com and other media in an interview. “Honestly, I am not taking Ryder lightly. Ryder has all of my respect. Yes, I see a difficult fight. At this level, every fight is difficult. The guy went the distance with Canelo Alvarez and beat Daniel Jacobs. Of course, it's a difficult fight. But I believe in my training. I believe we can get it done and beat this guy … I can assure it's going to be a great fight.”

Munguia looked vulnerable many times throughout his matchup against Derevyanchenko and he needed a 12th-round knockdown to score a razor-thin unanimous decision win. 

The rugged veteran Ryder will again look to play spoiler. His last attempt against Alvarez was unsuccessful, but the Brit still showed enough of a solid account against boxing’s biggest draw to land yet another significant fight. 

Munguia realizes Ryder can throw a wrench in his plans. 

“In every fight there is risk. I think Ryder is a very strong fighter. And of course, we're taking a risk, but I do not doubt that I am going to win this fight,” said Munguia.

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer, and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com, or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.