Munguia vs Hogan: Undercard close to finalized

Jaime Munguia will defend his WBO junior middleweight title on April 13 in Monterrey, Mexico, facing mandatory challenger Dennis Hogan in the DAZN main event.

Munguia (32-0, 26 KO) is one of the sport’s fastest-rising stars, an all-action battler who won the WBO belt last May from Sadam Ali with a dominant performance. He’s since defended successfully against Liam Smith, Brandon Cook, and Takeshi Inoue.

Hogan (28-1-1, 7 KO) was born in Ireland and now fights out of Australia. He’s won six in a row since a 2015 loss to Jack Culcay.

“I feel happy to be returning to Mexico,” said Munguia.”The last time I fought in Mexico was right here in Monterrey, so I’m excited to be here again. I’m ready to come back and deliver a great show to my Mexican people. It’s also very important to be fighting on this new platform, DAZN. It’s an honor for me to be fighting on this platform. It’s new, but it’s very important. It is the future of boxing.”

“I am looking forward to facing Jaime Munguia on April 13 in Monterrey, Mexico,” said Hogan. “Mexico’s culture has a rich history in boxing, and I can’t wait to show Mexico and the rest of the world that I am ready to dethrone Munguia. I am not concerned with his power, as I have fought bigger and stronger opponents. My pressure and style are going to give Munguia trouble. I have been fighting for this opportunity since I was eight years old. I’m going to make it count. My team at DDP Sports and Peter Kahn worked hard to get this fight done, and I’m looking forward to bringing the WBO junior middleweight title back to Australia.”

The undercard is starting to come together, too.

In the co-feature, Brazil’s Patrick Teixeira (29-1, 22 KO) will face Colombia’s Dormedes Potes (11-1-1, 8 KO) in a 10-round junior middleweight bout.

Diego De La Hoya (21-0, 10 KO) will move up in weight to take on Enrique Bernache (24-12, 12 KO) in a 10-round featherweight fight.

Flyweight Arely Mucino (27-3-2, 10 KO) will return in a 10-round bout; featherweight Irving Turrubiates (18-0, 12 KO) will be in an eight-round fight; lightweight Javier Gonzalez (13-0, 10 KO) will be in a six-round fight; junior flyweight Daniel Valladares (19-1, 11 KO) will be in another six-round fight; and Alex Rincon (6-0, 6 KO) will take on Isaac Mireles (7-6, 3 KO) in a six-round junior middleweight bout.

DAZN will face competition for viewers that night, as Showtime has Claressa Shields facing Christina Hammer, and PBC will air a card on FS1 headlined by Peter Quillin vs Caleb Truax.