David Benavidez confirmed that he wants to fight the winner of the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol 2 rematch next after his 12-round unanimous decision win over WBA ‘regular’ light heavyweight champion David Morrell on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
Morrell fought well, knocking Benavidez down in round 11 and dominating the championship rounds. At the end of the fight, you could see the damage on Benavidez’s swollen face from Morrell’s powerful punches. They’d made him look like Frankenstein’s monster in appearance.
The scores were 115-111, 115-111 and 118-108. Boxing News 24 had it even at 6-6, with neither fighter proving they were better. Obviously, Benavidez is good for business and the A-side. So, it was expected that he would win regardless. There are a lot more Benavidez fans in the U.S. than Morrell fans.
Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) says he’s his victory over Morrell places him in the “#1 spot” to fight the Beterbiev-Bivol winner of their February 22nd fight. Turki Al-Sheikh already said he wants him ringside.
No Rematch
When asked if he’d be interested in giving Morrell (11-1, 9 KOs) a rematch, Benavidez said, “He doesn’t deserve a rematch.”
Benavidez is going to have to fight a lot better against Beterbiev or Bivol if he wants to defeat them because he took a pounding tonight. If that were Beterbiev landing those same shots, Benavides might not make it through the sixth round unless he chooses a tactic to mute his offense by holding or running.
“I think this puts me in the pound-for-pound list at #9 or #6. I feel like when you’re in the pound-for-pound list, you’re a multiple champion,” said David Benavidez to the media at the post-fight press conference about what his win over David Morrell does for his career.
“I told David Morrell he earned my respect after the fight. We talk a lot of s***. It’s not fake. I did want to knock him out. I did want to break his face, but after you go 12 rounds, hitting someone for so long, the anger kind of goes away.
“I want to fight a rematch,” said Benavidez, joking when asked if he wanted to fight a rematch against Morrell or face the winner of the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol 2 fight.
“Did he even win one round?” said trainer Jose Benavidez Sr. about Morrell.
“So, he won two rounds. I don’t feel he deserves a rematch. This put us in the #1 spot. I guess that’s next,” said Benavidez about Morrell.
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