David Benavidez says his experience will be too much for “regular” WBA lightweight champion David Morrell and expects to knock him out in the next few rounds in their February 1 headliner.
Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) believes he has the edge against Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs) due to the superior opposition he has faced during his 11-year professional career in many “50-50” fights. He doesn’t mention who he fought during his career in matches that were considered even, but that’s what he claims.
Morrell has a slight advantage in youth, strength, technical skill and mobility over Benavidez. It also has less wear and tear. Benavidez gets hit a lot because he is an intensity player who stands in front of his opponents and overwhelms them with shots.
He had gotten away from that style because he melted down to compete at 168 with smaller and bigger fighters. Now that Benavidez is fighting where he should, at 175, he’s getting hit a lot and will have to change his style to avoid the knockout.
Benavidez vs. Morrell will headline the PBC on Prime Video PPV on February 1st at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
“I want to prove that I am the best in the world and the only one there besides Bivol and Beterbiev is David Morrell. This was the best fight I could see. It’s not the easiest fight. He’s probably the hardest besides Beterbiev and Bivol,” said David Benavidez Tobin.
“He had two words for me, saying I was running away from him. I had to take his temperature and let him know I’d be here all night. I’m not going to run from anybody, and by the time this fight is over, he’s going to know who the best David is,” Benavidez said of Morrell.
“Canelo is blocking my chance at greatness. I think now everyone wants to protect O. To me, if you want to get the money right, you have to go through the hardest battles. You have to show people what you’re made of. That’s what I’m doing with this fight.”
Canelo did the same thing Benavidez did with Morrell. He did not inspire Benavidez. If he was fighting the best opposition to build his fan base, Canelo would have fought him. The guys Canelo fights are the ones with fans, who bring something to the table. We saw how Benavidez couldn’t sell when he fought on PPV against Demetrius Andrade with a loaded card, and the event had bad numbers.
“Every fight I’ve had, it’s been tough, competitive fights where it seems like it’s 50-50. But I go in and do my thing and show why I’m the best in the world,” Benavidez said.
Benavidez’s fights have NOT been 50-50 fights during his 11 year career. He was always the favorite in his matches and that’s the problem. He’s taken risks so far with his clash with Morrell, and he’s only taking them because he pretty much has to.
Benavidez’s best wins:
– Demetrius Andrade: 35
– Plant Caleb
– Oleksandr Gvozdyk: 37
– Anthony Dirrell: 38
– Ronald Gavril
“That’s the difference between me and him. He fought against people who were not really good. That’s why he finishes early,” Benavidez said of Morrell. “I’ve fought against people who were experienced, veterans, and I finished them late.”
Morrell’s recent opponent, Radivoje Kalajdzic, is better than anyone Benavidez has fought. Gvozdyk was a good fighter before he retired in 2019, but he was out of the game for four years before making his comeback in 2023. This was not the top version of Gvozdyk that Benavidez fought.
Gvozdyk had beaten three second-tier fighters before facing Benavidez on May 15 and went the 12-round distance with him in what appeared to be a close fight. This was a poor performance from Benavidez, who didn’t look as good as Artur Beterbiev in his fight against Gvozdyk on October 18, 2019.
“It will be my experience against him coming in and trying to get a quick knockout. I am 100% focused. I know this fight won’t be easy, but it will probably end in the next few rounds,” Benavidez said of his fight with Morrell.
