Light heavyweight David Morrell is questioning the abilities of undefeated counterpart David Benavidez before their February 1 fight at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Morrell, 27, originally from Cuba, now trains with Ronnie Shields in Texas. Morrell turned professional in August 2019 and in his third fight fought in a 12-round bout. Morrell was riding a seven-fight knockout streak that ended in August against Radivoje “Hot Rod” Kalajdzic, a fight he won by unanimous decision. Though Morrell’s resume might not have the big names of Benavidez, he has constantly called for this fight and even moved up to light heavyweight after Benavidez made the move up in weight In Gloves Off: Benavidez-Morrell, a video Premier Boxing Champions uploaded to their YouTube channel, Morrell opened up on his thoughts about the fight.
“I don’t know why people say he is ‘the monster’,” Morrell said during an interview for Gloves Off. “Boom, he is going down 100 per cent. I promise you I will knock him out.”
Morrell went on to explain that he is unimpressed with Benavidez’s movement and boxing ability. Morrell, who comes from the Cuban amateur boxing program, has adapted well to the professional game. He has shown an ability to box but also an intent to hurt. Morrell has shown power and skill. Morrell shared his opinion of Benavidez’s footwork.
“Benavidez can’t dance,” Morrell said.
Benavidez is finishing up his camp in Las Vegas and holds a record of 29-0 (24 KOs). Benavidez, 28, made his light heavyweight debut in June winning against former titleholder Oleksandr Gvozdyk. Before that fight, Benavidez had defeated Caleb Plant and Demetrius Andrade in 2023 at super middleweight. Despite Benavidez’s resume of beating established high-ranking and talented fighters, Morrell continues to imply that Benavidez is a robotic come-forward fighter comparing him to Robocop, the main character of Paul Verhoeven’s 1987 film.
“You’ve seen the movie RoboCop, right,” Morrell, 11-0 (9 KOs), said. “He is the same.”
The fight will headline a Premier Boxing Champions pay-per-view on Prime Video.
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