Benavidez Turns Attention To KO Artist Christian Mbilli After Canelo Ducks Him
David Benavidez’s trainer, Jose Benavidez Jr., has slammed Canelo Alvarez for ducking the Mexican Monster after he left PBC.
Canelo walked away from PBC with two fights left on his deal after reports he only wanted to fight Jermall Charlo. The bout never went ahead with suggestions PBC was not willing to pay the Mexican a $35 million guarantee, given that the fight was unlikely to sell for Cinco de Mayo.
Boxing fans were calling for Canelo to face the Mexican Monster, who has been the WBC Super Middleweight Interim Champion for around two years. Despite this, Canelo’s camp decided to part ways with PBC, with the Mexican likely to face Jaime Munguia first and then Edgar Berlanga. That has left Benavidez missing out on a title shot for now, with Jose Benavidez Jr. having nothing but disappointment.
Benavidez Reacts
“It makes me very happy for Canelo and his team that he doesn’t want to fight David, because we must be doing something right. The most exciting fighter, the most feared fighter doesn’t want to fight David Benavidez. Man, that makes me super happy. Everybody knows that Canelo is at the end of his career. He’s not the same Canelo. He’s worn out his body with all the hard training he’s done. He knows that David can beat him, and he doesn’t want to lose to David,” Jose Benavidez Jr. said
That leaves Benavidez with two choices. He could move up to 175 pounds to face Oleksandr Gvozdyk for the WBC Interim Belt. A win puts Benavidez in the mandatory position for undisputed as Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev fight for all the belts on June 1. Benavidez would be mandatory for two weight classes, giving him more choices and increasing the pressure on the WBC to strip Canelo if he evades him.
“Very proud to announce a sensational fight which the @WBCBoxing has approved to sanction for the interim Lightheavyweight championship Benavidez vs Gvozdyk . Wish the best of luck for both champions,” Mauricio Sulaiman WBC President stated
Benavidez’s Options
The other option would be to stick around at 168 and fight the other top super middleweights. Christian Mbilli, the undefeated Frenchman whose record stands at 26-0 with 22 knockouts, has been mentioned. After stopping Rohan Murdock in his last fight, Mbilli targeted a fight with Canelo. A victory over Benavidez would increase his chances of getting that fight. Benavidez’s father, David Benavidez Sr., was open to that fight.
“Mbili, that f***ing guy is a monster. He’s an animal, too. He looked great in his last fight [against Rohan Murdock in January]. That’s another guy we’d like to fight. That’s a dangerous fighter right there. I consider him more dangerous than [David] Morrell. He has more experience and has climbed the ladder on his own. He has proven himself,” David Benavidez Sr. stated
If Benavidez decides to move up to 175 next, he is unlikely to return to 168. The boxer is already much bigger than the weight class, making it more difficult to lose the weight as he ages. Since Benavidez has spoken about wanting to fight the likes of Bivol, the opportunity to compete for undisputed against the best at light heavyweight does not come around often.
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