Jaime Munguía survived sixth-round trouble to retain his title in Riyadh, winning 116–112 and 117–111 twice. The WBA requires him to face mandatory challenger Bektemir Melikuziev next.
Jaime Munguía retained his World Boxing Association (WBA) super-middleweight title against Nikita Zon in Riyadh on 31 October 2026, winning a 12-round unanimous decision—all three judges scored the fight in his favor.
The victory completed Munguía’s first defense of the belt he won against Armando Resendiz by unanimous decision in May 2026. It also ended Zon’s unbeaten record.
The Guardian’s ringside account described Zon landing a sixth-round barrage that left Munguía struggling to stay upright. Munguía recovered before the bell and hurt a tiring Zon late in the round, then controlled the second half of the fight.
The reporter described referee Tony Weeks stepping between the fighters when Munguía appeared close to being stopped, and assessed that the intervention gave the champion seconds to recover. That assessment was the reporter’s, not an official ruling.
| Boxer | Punches landed | Punches thrown |
|---|---|---|
| Nikita Zon | 28 | 65 |
| Jaime Munguía | 18 | 54 |
Of their combined 46 landed punches in the round, 43 were power shots—punches other than jabs.
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Speaking through a translator afterward, Munguía said he went all out after catching Zon, let his guard down and was caught while throwing punches. He rated his performance six or seven out of 10.
Zon was fighting outside Russia for the first time. Munguía, a 30-year-old Mexican, brought substantially more professional experience, including a unanimous-decision loss to Canelo Álvarez in May 2024.
| Boxer | Wins–losses–draws | Knockout wins |
|---|---|---|
| Jaime Munguía | 46–2–0 | 35 |
| Nikita Zon | 12–0–1 | 10 |
The WBA authorized the Zon bout only after Munguía’s and Bektemir Melikuziev’s teams agreed to the arrangement. Melikuziev retained his status as mandatory challenger—the boxer entitled to a required title challenge.
The Guardian suggested that the winner could move toward a unification fight, combining titles, against the winner of Álvarez’s matchup with Christian Mbilli. That was a possibility; the WBA’s authorization requires Munguía to face Melikuziev in his next fight, with negotiations for the mandatory defense to begin once the Zon bout concluded.
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