| Michi Munoz | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jorge Michael Muñoz (1981-05-03) 3 May 1981 (age 43) León, Guanajuato, Mexico |
| Other names | The Mexican Sensation The Matador |
| Statistics | |
| Weight(s) | Middleweight |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 43 |
| Wins | 28 |
| Wins by KO | 19 |
| Losses | 14 |
| Draws | 1 |
| No contests | 0 |
Jorge Michael Muñoz (born May 3, 1981), more commonly known as Michi Muñoz, is a Mexican-born American professional boxer.
Munoz is the former NABC light middleweight champion and has been described as one of the hottest prospects to ever come from the Midwest of America.
Background
Munoz was born in León, Guanajuato, Mexico although grew up in Topeka, Kansas, United States. He is one of three boxing brother along with Raul and Alex.
Career
Munoz boxed as an amateur prior to taking a long break from boxing before moving to the professional ranks. Munoz stated "I came back, and I feel more mature, and I feel like my body's more mature.".
Munoz turned professional in June 2004, winning his first fight at Union Station, Kansas City, Missouri, in which Munoz beat American fighter Lance Moody on the undercard of the Jesse Sanders v Donny McCrary fight.
NABC light middleweight title
Munoz won all of his first 14 fights, 11 inside the distance, before he fought for his first title belt against Joshua Smith. They faced each other for the vacant NABC light middleweight title in August 2006.
Right-handed Munoz injured his right in the early rounds of the fight and had to fight the remainder of the bout using only his left. Despite this setback Munoz took the title belt by a unanimous decision of 80-72 margin on all of the judge's score cards.
Joey Gilbert fight
Following another two victories Munoz then faced Joey Gilbert, the star of the original series of reality TV boxing show The Contender, for the WBO North American Boxing Organization middleweight championship at Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
Gilbert was originally scheduled to face Cincinnati's Robert Dula who pulled out due to a shoulder injury. Although the fight was to take place at an altitude of 6000 feet at the MontBleu Resort & Casino Munoz still took the fight with just 8 days' notice.
Munoz was the sharper and more aggressive fighter in the early round before showing signs of breathing difficulty as a result of the high altitude. Munoz still pushed the champion Gilbert the full 12 rounds finally losing the fight on points. After the fight Gilbert stated the Munoz was "one of the best fighters I've ever faced".
John Duddy fight
Munoz returned to the ring the following month to defeat Wisconsin fighter Aundalen Sloan and quickly added another two victories to his record in 2007.
Munoz then fought Irish boxer John Duddy at the Madison Square Garden in New York City on October 10, 2009. Duddy won the fight via unanimous decision.
Munoz was outpointed easily by Duddy and also lost his next 2 fights to Noe Gonzalez Alcoba, and veteran Bronco Mckart....both losses were by KO
Munoz then fought Mike McGuire who had a record of 6 wins and 28 losses with one draw, and Munoz won via KO in the 2nd round. Munoz has not fought since then and has taken almost a year off as of today
References
- "Past – Present – The Future!". Danger-Fire Media. Archived from the original on 8 June 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- Castellanos, Ernesto (19 November 2008). "¡Michi Muñoz en gran chance ante Winky Wright!". NotiFight (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ Rick Peterson. "Topeka boxer making up for lost time in ring". The Capital-Journal. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- Ernie W. Webb III. "Even fighting with one hand, Munoz triumphs". The Capital-Journal. Archived from the original on 22 October 2007. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- "Joey Gilbert beats Michi Munoz". Eastside Boxing. Archived from the original on 10 March 2007. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- Tim Parsons. "Joey Gilbert beats Michi Munoz". Tahoe Daily Tribune. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- Appeal Staff Report. "Gilbert defends his title". Nevada Appeal. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- "Munoz v Gilbert". Danger-Fire Media. Archived from the original on 8 June 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
- "Duddy downs Munoz in Madison Square". RTÉ.ie. 11 October 2009.
External links
- Boxing record for Michi Munoz from BoxRec (registration required)
- MySpace page for Michie Munoz