David Benavidez says he’ll be fighting David Morrell next in a light heavyweight contest that will reportedly take place in Las Vegas on January 25th. On Instagram, Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) announced that contracts are “done.”
Morrell and Benavidez both were forced to move up from 168 recently due to the lack of opportunities in that weight class. Canelo Alvarez wouldn’t fight either of them.
Benavidez will need to raise his game for him to beat the Cuban David Morrell, as he’s a much better fighter than anyone he’s fought during his 11-year career. It wouldn’t be a shock if Morrell knocks out Benavidez, whose fighting style puts him in the line of fire.
The high-volume puncher Benavidez will put his WBC interim title at stake in his second fight at 175 against WBA ‘regular’ champion Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs) in a fight that will reportedly be shown on PBC on Prime Video PPV.
Benavidez didn’t look so great in his last fight against former WBC light heavyweight champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15th, laboring to a 12 round unanimous decision in Las Vegas.
He blamed it afterward on having a hand injury, but it looked like his power didn’t carry up from the 168-lb division, and he didn’t have the stamina to carry the extra weight. Indeed, Benavidez was gassed out completely by the sixth, and he took a shellacking in the entire second half.
The fight showed that things would be much different for Benavidez at 175 compared to the easy life he had at 168, beating smaller, older opposition.
“There were a lot of names on the table, but I wanted to give my fans the best fight possible. I reached out to David Morrell and his team to make this happen, and we got the contract done 🔥🔥🔥. This fight really gonna be a banger!!! 2 of the best in the division and two titles on the line,” said David Benavidez on Instagram.
