D avid Benavidez is accustomed to being frozen out. At super middleweight, the unbeaten Arizona native campaigned endlessly for a matchup against Canelo Alvarez, only to be unapologetically ignored while the sport’s biggest star feasted on other prey. Benavidez, who had two previous reigns as a WBC titleholder, stood as Canelo’s No. 1 challenger for over two years. Frustrated and with his 6-foot-2 frame crying out for a move up in weight, Benavidez finally accepted that his future lay at 175 pounds. Following showcase wins over Oleksandr Gvozdyk and David Morrell, the 28-year-old pressure fighter again became the WBC’s No. 1 contender and was in pole position to challenge for all the light heavyweight marbles. Fate had other ideas. The elite-level players in the division were – and remain – former Canelo conqueror Dmitry Bivol and the marauding Artur Beterbiev. Last October, Beterbiev outpointed Bivol in a classic battle, which crowned the first undisputed light heavyweight champ in two decades. Bivol would avenge that loss four months later in another close fight, leading fans to rightfully demand a rubber match. Bivol’s team was noncommittal when it came to negotiations for the Beterbiev decider, so he was eventually ordered by the WBC to face Benavidez. That fight didn’t come close to transpiring, so “The Mexican Monster” was upgraded from interim WBC titleholder to full titleholder without throwing a punch. A warrior to his core, Benavidez desperately wanted to win that title in the ring. Understandably embittered and eager to prove his superiority, Benavidez is now braced for his maiden title defense, which comes against explosive British power-puncher Anthony Yarde on November 22. That bout headlines the brilliant Ring IV card at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, so the two-weight titleholder – who has been hovering around the bottom of The Ring’s pound-for-pound
FLOAT LIKE A BEE CALLING THE SHOTS
list since last year – has the perfect platform to display his formidable fighting skills. The Ring caught up with Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) as he looked forward to throwing down against Yarde in what is potentially a Fight of the Year contender. The Ring: What would you consider your greatest asset as a fighter? David Benavidez: I think my hunger for the sport and my work ethic sets me apart. I’ve been fighting for 11 years. I have
with Dmitry Bivol, so the WBC elevated me to champion. You know, I’m happy right now – happy because I’m in position to make great fights happen against great fighters because of the belt. That’s what I am here for. I’m here to test my skills and give the fans what they want to see. The Ring: Does having the WBC belt make it easier for you to get the Dmitry Bivol-Artur Beterbiev III winner in the ring? DB: It does. Any fight with me is
can beat me in the ring. Well, then prove it. Get in the ring with me. Beterbiev and Bivol I feel are both honorable fighters, and I actually admire the fact Bivol is giving Beterbiev a rematch, because he is entitled to it. But I will be right there. The winner better give me the opportunity, because I’ve been in line for a long, long time and I’m tired of it. The Ring: And if you don’t get the Bivol- Beterbiev III winner? DB: Plan B is a move to cruiserweight. Our plan, if that fight doesn’t happen, we have a verbal agreement from Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy to fight [WBA/WBO cruiserweight titleholder Gilberto] “Zurdo” Ramirez. It could happen. I don’t want to wait. I’m tired of waiting. I sparred Zurdo for years and I always got the better of him. But I’m in a good position here at light heavyweight. I want to be really dominant at 175. I see myself, with modern conditioning, fighting into my 40s. The Ring: You are coming off an impressive victory over Morrell, so what were your thoughts when you saw his fight against Imam Khataev, who many thought beat Morrell? DB: I thought Morrell was going to win easily. I beat the fight out of Morrell. He didn’t look like the same fighter [against Khataev] that he did against me. The only thing I could say about Morrell is maybe he did not prepare enough. I thought Khataev won the fight. I thought it was a mistake that Morrell was given the victory. It was a good fight. Morrell got dropped. But he stepped it up in the last rounds and he could have finished [Khataev], but the judges got it wrong. Khataev won by two or three rounds. The Ring: You have Anthony Yarde in your first title defense on a Riyadh Season event on November 22. What are some
not been the perfect fighter. I have not been in the best shape. I’ll admit I haven’t been the most athletic guy who stays in shape. Why am I still here? Why am I as dominant as I am? What keeps me going? I’ve stayed dedicated. I’ve stayed motivated. There is something that I want that money cannot buy. I want to be the greatest ever. I won’t be satisfied until I am. I have made a lot of money. I don’t care about the money. I don’t
“Why am I as dominant as I am? What keeps me going? I’ve stayed dedicated. I’ve stayed motivated. There is something that I want that money cannot buy. I want to be the greatest ever.”
care about the cars or the houses. I care about being the greatest of all time. That’s why I’m different. Guys today don’t think like that anymore. The Ring: When you were upgraded to “full” WBC light heavyweight titleholder, how did that make you feel? DB: To be honest, the type of fighter that I am, I would rather take a world title from a champion or win it in a fight. But the way the situation was, I didn’t mind getting the title this way, upgraded to champion. Me and my team did everything within our power to fight for the world title, and I was the number one contender for three years in every sanctioning body, and I never got the fight with Canelo Alvarez. It was three years of waiting for Canelo [at 168], and we were forced to go up to 175. I fought a great fighter in Oleksandr Gvozdyk and David Morrell. I did enough to get a title shot. I was the number one contender for the WBC and the fight wasn’t going to happen
lucrative. It’s for a world title. It’s enough to entice anyone. Any champion or any fighter who is a number one contender, this will make it easier for me getting the fights I want and possibly make it easier for me to get that fight with Canelo. It’s the fight everyone wants. It’s going to be a subject that will be talked about until it happens. It’s a fight that has to happen. Now Canelo says he’s fighting for greatness. I have the WBC title. I’m going to beat all these fighters, and if he wants that shot at greatness, I’m going to be the one holding that belt against him. The Ring: Do you foresee any roadblocks in facing the Bivol-Beterbiev III winner? DB: I don’t even think like that anymore, since I’ve had so many roadblocks already in my career. These big fights will eventually have to happen. If they don’t, it shows that these fighters are scared of me. I don’t have to say anything else. Everyone says that they
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