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Trainer José Benavidez Sr. advises Jaime Munguía not to take a rematch with Bruno Surace after being knocked out by him in the sixth round last Saturday night in Tijuana, Mexico, on December 14.
José Sr. says Surace (26-0-2, 5 KOs) will be “super motivated” after his victory, and could cause another “surprise” in the rematch with former WBO junior middleweight champion Munguía (44- 2, 35 KOs). KO). Benavidez Sr. wants Munguía to move away from the loss, live his life and not accept a second fight.
Avoiding revenge
José Sr. feels Munguia should have finished Surace after knocking him down in the second round. He believes he let him free because he wanted to please the fans. It didn’t seem like that. Munguia looked like he tried to knock him out, but changed his mind after Surace, 26, nailed him with a huge right hand to the head.
That shot made Munguía retreat because it was as hard as the one that knocked him out in the sixth.
According to Salvador Rodríguez of ESPN Knockout, Munguía’s promoters at Zanfer want to activate the rematch clause in his contract with Surace to force a second fight in the first half of 2025.
“I think he was taking his time, trying to find the perfect shot. I think it should have been Jaime,” José Benavidez Sr. told Fight Hub TV when asked why Jaime Munguía suffered a surprise knockout loss to Bruno Surace last Saturday night.
“I think he (Munguia) was trying to please the people, his fans, and that’s what happened. I think if I had pushed the gas a little bit harder, I think I would have stopped him when he dropped him (in the second round). You probably thought, “This guy is too easy.” “I’m going to give my fans a show and then I can eliminate it.”
“That’s a big mistake he made. I think he should have stopped it, he should have done everything and taken things seriously. It’s a little difficult. I’d let that go. I wouldn’t accept revenge. I would move on with my life and not accept that fight,” José Sr. said when asked if Munguía should accept the rematch with Surace.
It would be interesting to know if José Sr. would have the same attitude of not accepting a rematch if his son, David Benavidez, was knocked out by Surace. Would you recommend that David not activate the rematch clause if Surace hit him in the sixth round on Saturday night?
“Now that guy is on his mind. That guy is super motivated and showed the world what he could do. You can imagine the motivation he has right now. Actually, he (Surace) is a pretty good fighter. He counted very well and I think we could have another surprise,” said José Sr.
