David Benavidez is back in training, working on his combination punching as usual. The former two-time WBC super middleweight champion Benavidez is in a holding pattern waiting for the winner of the October 12th fight between light heavyweight champions Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol.
Still Throwing Machine Gun Combinations
In a video clip of the ‘Mexican Monster,’ Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) is seen throwing machine gun combinations, grunting heavily, and crowding the person throwing the mitts.
Benavidez, 27, utilized that fighting style effectively while campaigning at 168 because he was bigger than his opponents. Thus far, that style has not worked for him, as he was shelled in his last fight when he fought that way.
In the 175-lb division, Benavidez is a fish out of water, looking nothing like the fighter he’d been when campaigning at super middleweight against smaller, less talented, older opposition. Benavidez is too weak for the light heavyweight division, and his bad habit of standing at close range throwing speedy combinations will make him vulnerable against the top-tier light heavyweights.
Food for 175-pounders
Benavidez is food for the sharks at 175 with that approach. Benavidez could get away with fighting that way if he had power, but he’s not a puncher. He’s a volume guy, and those fighters don’t do well at 175.
As we saw in Benavidez’s debut at 175 against former WBC light heavyweight champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15th, he’s vulnerable when he attempts to fight close. He was nailed by heavy shots from the more powerful and technically gifted Gvozdyk in that fight and punished heavily.
Even more worrisome was how Benavidez gassed out after six rounds and was fighting on fumes from the seventh round. Gvozdyk dominated the final six rounds, appearing to win every round, but the judges surprisingly gave Benavidez a wide 12-round unanimous decision.
The outcome looked like a draw. Benavidez didn’t deserve the win, and the judges did him no favors by giving him a wide decision because social media fans saw him as undeserving of his victory.
The Need to Change Fighting Approach
If Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) emerges victorious on October 12th against Bivol, Benavidez must change his approach to fighting. He won’t last long if he attempts to brawl with Beterbiev close, firing his trademark combinations. Beterbiev specializes in fighting at close range and hits much harder than Benavidez.
Benavidez is the WBC mandatory for the Beterbiev-Bivol undisputed light heavyweight championship winner, and it appears he’ll stay inactive to fight whoever emerges from that fight.
Given Benavidez’s struggles in his battle with Oleksandr Gvozdyk, he shouldn’t take any chances of fighting anyone until he gets his big-money fight against the Beterbiev vs. Bivol. There’s too much money at stake for Benavidez to take the risk of taking a tune-up before facing the winner of that clash.
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