Jaime Munguia had a chance to position himself for a world title fight but also wanted to keep his word and proceed with a fight that was already in advanced talks.

The former junior middleweight title is about to see that loyalty repaid in a big way.

Tijuana’s Munguia (38-0, 30KOs) had to dig deep to prevail over a determined Gabriel Rosado, claiming a competitive but clear twelve-round, unanimous decision in their non-stop action fight. Scores of 119-109, 118-110 and 117-111 all landed in favor of Munguia, who is now 4-0 as a middleweight and the top-rated contender for both the WBC and WBO titles.  

However, his handlers are eyeing another avenue for his first shot at becoming a two-division titlist—a mouthwatering showdown with Gennadiy Golovkin (41-1-1, 36KOs).

“I would love that fight (with Gennadiy Golovkin),” Munguia told DAZN’s Chris Mannix after the win, his first to go the distance since April 2019. “It would be a great fight, one that the public would really enjoy.

“I’m very excited about possibly getting that fight next.”

Munguia’s win comes roughly six-and-a-half weeks ahead of Golovkin’s recently announced title unification bout with WBA titlist Ryota Murata, which will take place December 29 at Saitama (Japan) Super Arena. The fight will air live on DAZN, on which Munguia has fought since January 2019 and now through his last six fights. The brass at the sports streaming platform are keen on positioning Munguia to face the winner, as are his co-promoters Zanfer Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions.

Should that fight not work out, Munguia is prepared to challenge for the WBC and WBO belts.

Reigning WBO titlist Demetrius Andrade (30-0, 18KOs) attempts his fifth title defense when he faces Ireland’s Jason Quigley (19-1, 14KOs) this Friday from SNHU Arena in Manchester, England. WBC titlist Jermall Charlo (32-0, 22KOs) is on the short list of candidates to next land a coveted assignment versus undisputed super middleweight king Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (57-1-2, 39KOs), a fight that would require a move up in weight for the unbeaten two-division titlist.

Munguia would not have a clear shot at Charlo, as the WBC has previously ordered a title eliminator with Sergiy Derevyanchenko (13-3, 10KOs). The sanctioning body agreed to wait until after Munguia’s fight with Rosado, with those plans further delayed pending the outcome of Derevyanchenko’s scheduled fight with Carlos Adames as part of a December 5 Showtime Pay-Per-View event from Staples Center in Los Angeles.

“We’re ready for a world title fight in the coming year. A world title or a title eliminator,” insists Munguia.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox