David Benavidez is counting on his professional experience to carry him to victory against undefeated David Morrell on February 1 in their 12-round fight on PBC on Prime Video PPV.
‘Mexican monster’ Benavidez predicts he will soon be the ‘face of boxing’ and sees this fight as his ‘takeover’. He obviously doesn’t lack self-confidence for the fight against Morrell.
Benavidez’s confidence
David Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) says he can’t wait to add Morrell’s ‘regular’ WBA light heavyweight title to his collection. He currently holds the WBC interim 175-pound belt, a trinket title that guarantees him a title shot against champion Artur Beterbiev if he is victorious against Morrell.
Benavidez-Morrell is headlining at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. This is a fight that many boxing fans consider to be 50-50, but not Benavidez. He sees it as an assured victory for him, but that’s how he is.
If he were to fight Beterbiev, Jai Opetaia or even Daniel Dubois, he would probably be just as certain of victory. He’s one of those guys who has a huge ego shaped by years of campaigning at 168, and he’s yet to fight an A-level fighter in his career.
Morrell is the closest thing to this type of fighter. That’s what makes it interesting: Benavidez will have to show if he’s as good as he thinks he is. I think that’s not the case because his brother, José Benavidez Jr., is the same. He loses every time he faces A-level opposition, but he is always certain to win. It will be the first time for Benavidez, and he could also lose.
PBC PPV Undercard Fights
Brandon Figueroa vs. Stephen Fulton
Yoenli Hernández vs. Angel Ruiz Astorga
Isaac Cruz vs. Angel Fierro Barreda
Jesus Alejandro Ramos Jr. vs. Jeison Rosario
Mirco Cuello vs. Christian Olivo
Experience versus power
“I don’t see the amateur as any other [advantage]. It’s not an amateur fight,” David Benavidez told media when asked about the experience advantage David Morrell has over him from his days as an amateur star in Cuba.
“It’s a 12-round championship fight. He could have an advantage for three rounds due to his amateur [experience]but other than that, three rounds mean nothing. I have been around the best fighters, the biggest venues and the biggest fights. This is my third or fourth PPV.
“So I have experience on my side. I don’t think he’s ever been in anything like this, and I’m going to show why I’m on a different level. He knew he ate a bigger portion than he could chew,” Benavidez said of Morrell.
Amateur experience counts when a fighter has the kind of success Morrell had in Cuba. As an amateur, he had a record of 130-2, and that could affect this fight if he can handle the pressure from Benavidez. Morrell cannot move for 12 rounds.
He’s going to have to hold on and fight Benavidez to win, because if he tries to make a move like he did in his debut at 175 on August 3 against Radivoje Kalajdzic, he’ll lose a decision. Benavidez will have the advantage in punching power, but Morrell can take him out by knocking him out. This is what he will have to do.
Benavidez has a thick skull and seems to take shots like it’s nothing. He has a front like that of a drive-in movie theater. The blows that Oleksandr Gvozdyk gave him with full force had no effect and they were more powerful than the ones he connected with. He took them. However, Morrell hits harder and he won’t tire with the movement like Gvozdyk did. The 37-year-old looked tired and old during that fight with Benavidez last June.
“I know what I can do. All the top fighters say the same thing, but once they get in the ring with me, they say, “David Benavidez is on a different level. »I’m really motivated. I’m excited to go out there and get that WBA belt. I don’t have any. So I’m very happy to add one to my collection,” Benavidez said.
“The Mexican Monster” has yet to fight a “high caliber fighter” in his career. I also don’t know that Morrell is a “high caliber” fighter, but he fights at a higher level than the best guys Benavidez has fought.
Morrell’s power and technical advantage make him a threat, especially with the way Benavidez focuses on everything he throws. He’s reckless in the way he fights, and he’ll end up getting knocked out fighting like that. Will Morrell be the one to do it? We don’t know, but I wouldn’t be shocked.
So we don’t know who he’s talking about. His best wins were against Oleksandr Gvozdyk, 37, Demetrius Andrade, 36, and Caleb Plant. They are NOT “high caliber” fighters.
Andrade was a good fighter years ago when he was 154, but he was too old and too small to fight light heavyweight Benavidez at 168. David looked huge as he rehydrated for Andrade and didn’t look like a super middleweight. There was no way Demetrius could beat Benavidez with him so much bigger. If things were equal and Andrade was young and the fight was at 154 in 2012, he would have had a chance, but not at 168 against a much younger, light heavyweight-sized Benavidez .
Gvozdyk had been retired for four years after being knocked out by Artur Beterbiev in 2019. He came back and beat up a few cans of tomatoes before being selected by Benanvidez’s management. This wasn’t the premium version of Oleksandr who lost to Beterbiev and knocked out Adonis Stevenson.
The face of boxing?
“This is my cover. Seeing fighters in Vegas, I feel like I could take over. I really entertain and give great fights. I want this for myself. I want to show people that I am the best. When I go there, everyone sees the level now. I’m just excited to achieve my dreams and become the face of boxing,” Benavidez said.
It’s going to be difficult for Benavidez to become “the face of boxing” without beating Morrell or the winner of the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol 2 rematch. With the way Benavidez charges every punch, putting everything into it, he’s going to have some trouble against Morrell or Beterbiev if he gets that far.
The way Benavidez fought against Oleksandr Gvozdyk last June will hurt him badly. Fortunately for him, Gvozdyk was mainly pushing his punches and not putting maximum power into them. When he started loading up his shots in the second half, he was lighting up Benavidez with headshots.
In the final 30 seconds of the 12th, he hurt Benavidez with a right hand to the body. Morrell is much faster, younger and more powerful than Gvozdyk. He will do damage to Benavidez. I don’t think the “Mexican Monster” can change because that’s how he’s always fought and he’s incapable of trying to box. When he’s on the outside, he’s full of wild hooks, and that will be a problem against Morrell. He will counter it, and we could see a knockout victory for Morrell.
