David Morrell Ready To Shine At Light-Heavy After Super-Middle Champions ‘Ducked’ Him
David Morrell says he will “shine even more” at light-heavyweight ahead of his debut in the division on Saturday, after feeling he needed to leave super-middleweight because the champions refused to fight him.
Morrell (10-0-0 9 KO) will debut at 175lbs this weekend at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, taking his place amongst a stacked Riyadh Season card led by Terence Crawford’s WBA super-welterweight title fight against champion Israil Madrimov.
The Cuban will face the tough Serbia-born American Radivoje Kalajdzic (29-2-0 21 KO), with the WBA’s ‘regular’ light-heavyweight title on the line.
Morrell held the same belt at 168lbs having first won the interim title in only his third professional fight. He was later elevated to ‘regular’ champion – with Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez named ‘super’ champion – and he successfully defended the belt six times.
However, despite his position, a bout with undisputed champion Canelo never came, with the Mexican opting to previously fight Jaime Munguia and will next face Edgar Berlanga. Morrell’s team claimed earlier this year that Canelo was “ducking” their fighter – claims similar to those made by David Benavidez, who tried unsuccessfully for two years to secure a bout with the champion.
Morrell Accuses Canelo Of ‘Ducking’ Him
Benavidez has given up trying and made his move to light-heavy, claiming a debut victory over former world champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk in June. Earlier this month, he said he will remain at 175 and chase world titles there.
Morrell has now swiftly followed in Benavidez’s footsteps and revealed even before his debut that he plans to remain in the heavier division.
“All the champions at super middleweight have looked elsewhere, as none of them wanted to fight me,” Morrell told BoxingScene. “I don’t need to mention any names, but everyone knows who has been ducking me. So now I take my talents to the light heavyweight division, where I believe I will shine even more.”
Morrell has been working with long-time trainer Ronnie Shields in preparation for Kalajdzic, and has been working specifically on how to operate as a light-heavyweight.
“Training in Houston with Ronnie Shields has been great,” Morrell said. “For this camp, we worked on setting up more power shots and pacing my work rate in case the fight goes the distance, being that it will be my first fight at light heavyweight. I had tremendous sparring and I’m looking sharp with the timing of my punches.”
Kalajdzic The Toughest Test Yet
Morrell will be contesting his first bout of the year on Saturday. In every year of his professional career dating back to 2019, he has consistently fought twice per year. And he’s certainly not been getting the rounds in, either; the Cuban has just three rounds under his belt from 2023 having stopped his last two opponents in the first and second.
He faces perhaps his biggest challenge so far in the tough and experienced light-heavyweight Kalajdzic. His only defeat at the top level came against the division’s unified champion Artur Beterbiev in May 2019. Since then, he’s reeled off five straight wins over varying levels of opponents.
“It’s my understanding that no one wants to fight Kalajdzic, so I believe his confidence is at an all-time high,” Morrell said. “I know he’s on a nice winning streak as well, so I’m expecting a tough fight. He’s fought at the world championship level and has more experience than me in the pros, but I have many amateur fights that have prepared me for any style he will bring to the ring. I will make adjustments as the fight goes on, and I see myself with my hands raised in victory, either by knockout or by decision.”
He may not yet have fought at the new weight, but Morrell already feels comfortable in the division and looks set to remain there.
“The added weight feels comfortable, and my power is still there,” he said. “I’m dedicating this fight to all my people back home in Cuba, all my family, all my friends, and all my people that have been supporting me in the States.”