Despite being a pro for nearly a decade, Jaime Munguia has yet to register the sort of career-defining victory that would take him to the next level. In an effort to quiet his naysayers, the 26-year-old is attempting to map out a gigantic 2023.

Although he openly declined showdowns against Janibek Alimkhanuly, the current WBO middleweight champion, and Carlos Adames, the reigning WBC interim belt holder, Munguia (41-0, 33 KOs) has his eyes set on killing two birds with one stone.

Presently, with Gennadiy Golovkin holding firm to both the WBA and IBF 160-pound titles, Munguia has expressed an overwhelming desire to face the hard-hitting future Hall of Famer. While he respects Munguia’s willingness to finally step into the line of fire, Abel Sanchez, the former trainer of the Kazakhstan star, believes that Munguia should do his best to eschew Golovkin. Unless, for whatever reason, Munguia is in the mood to receive a life-changing beating.

“Stay away from GGG,” said Sanchez to K.O. Artist Sports. “The only one that can give GGG any kind of trouble is Canelo right now. Stay away from GGG. He doesn't need that kind of beating. Golovkin will beat him like he stole something.”

In spite of Sanchez’s prophecies, Golovkin looked like a shell of his former destructive self during his last ring outing.

Desperate to register an official victory over Canelo Alvarez, his longtime rival, Golovkin (42-2-1, 37 KOs) boldly made the trek eight pounds north as he challenged the Mexican star for undisputed supremacy at 168 pounds.

Game as ever, Golovkin weathered the early storm before pushing the pace in the second half. Still, even with his rally, the 40-year-old appeared listless for long stretches, leading to his close but clear unanimous decision defeat.

Unabashed by his efforts, Golovkin revealed that he would ultimately drop back down in weight to defend his middleweight throne. Munguia, amongst many, appeared buoyant as he hopes to receive the call from team Golovkin.

Sanchez, having trained and nurtured Golovkin to worldwide recognition, acknowledges that his reflexes have slowed just a touch. But, even a slightly diminished version of Golovkin, at least in his view, is a handful to deal with.

“It’s gonna be difficult to beat Gennadiy Golovkin.”