Benavidez Told To Challenge Usyk

Roy Jones Jr.’s message for David Benavidez following his WBA and WBO cruiserweight title victory over Gilberto Ramirez is simple: go fight Usyk.

Coming from a man who made precisely that journey himself — rising from middleweight to become the WBA heavyweight champion — the recommendation carries a particular weight: "That's the only fight I want to see him right now. You beat everybody else in all the other divisions. Go up and fight Usyk. That's the best fight for him."

Benavidez previously held titles at super middleweight and light heavyweight before adding the cruiserweight belts, making him a three-division world champion and leaving a trail of beaten opponents across three weight classes that is difficult to argue with.

The problem, as Benavidez himself has consistently pointed out, is size. Usyk is a former undisputed cruiserweight champion who moved to heavyweight and became undisputed there too — a fighter whose technical excellence has proved effective against men considerably larger than himself. Benavidez moving up to challenge him would involve stepping into a weight class where the size could hamper him.

Will It Happen?

Jones' counterargument is implicit in his own career. He weighed around 193 pounds when he challenged John Ruiz for the WBA heavyweight title in 2003 and won. The conventional wisdom said it could not be done. Whether Benavidez’s team can be convinced to take the risk that Jones is advocating is the question the division is now asking.

“I won’t rule it out. Maybe in five years my body grows into heavyweight. Maybe we can go up there and make a fight in five years,” Benavidez said