Boxing analyst Tim Bradley got on his soapbox to demand Canelo Alvarez face David Benavidez, his WBC 168-lb mandatory, next in September.
Bradley, who is high on Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) and views him as an elite talent, feels he’s earned his shot at challenging Canelo (62-2-2, 39 KOs) for his undisputed super middleweight championship. However, Benavidez has outgrown the 168-lb division and moved up to 175 to capture the WBC interim belt.
Unfortunately, Bradley hasn’t been keeping up with things because Benavidez has already moved up to 175. If he does move back down to 168, he’s likely to be drained and skeletal. In his last fights at 168, Benavidez looked deathly, making weight. If he does choose to return, hopefully, he doesn’t live to regret it by putting his health at risk, shutting down his kidneys.
Benavidez is the WBC mandatory challenger for unified light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev and wants to face the winner of his October 12th undisputed title clash against WBA Dmitry Bivol.
The WBC has already informed Benavidez, 27, that he must decide which mandatory position he wants to keep at 168 and 175. He can’t hold onto both, which is what Benavidez wants. If he gives up his 175-lb spot, he can’t force a title shot against the Bivol vs. Beterbiev winner.
If David Morrell wins his August 3rd match against Radivoje “Hot Rod” Kalajdzic, he will likely get the chance to fight the Beterbiev-Bivol winner.
It’s looking like Morrell will be the one to fight the winner of that match because Benavidez will probably choose to keep his WBC mandatory spot at 168 with his forlorn hopes of getting a chance for a massive life-changing payday against Canelo.
Benavidez has tirelessly pursued that fight for five years, which makes him look desperate and needy in the eyes of the boxing public.
“Step up and face Benavidez, a fighter that has earned his spot, someone that has earned his world championship that you have,” said boxing analyst Tim Bradley to Probox TV, demanding Canelo Alvarez face David Benavidez. “Canelo is soft,” said Bradley.
As far as Benavidez having ‘earned his spot” comment by Bradley, I don’t see that as valid. Who has Benavidez beaten to earn a chance to fight Canelo?
The guys Benavidez has beaten were lesser fighters, many of them older. When the young Cuban talent called out Benavidez, David Morrell, he refused to fight him. What does that tell you?
Benavidez’s Weak Resume:
– Demetrius Andrade: 35-years-old
– David Lemieux: 34
– Caleb Plant: Previously knocked out by Canelo
– Anthony Dirrell: 39
– Oleksandr Gvozyk: 37 coming off 4-year-retirement
“If you go on a Saturday afternoon in England, you’re going up college football in the United States,” said Paulie Malignaggi about it not being a good idea for Canelo to fight Chris Eubank Jr. in September in the UK, given that his fight would be piped into the U.S and would be shown at the same time as college football games.
It doesn’t matter if Canelo fights Chris Eubank Jr. on a Saturday afternoon because his huge fan base in the U.S. will ensure that it’s a success on PPV, even on September 14th. The UFC event will occur at night in the U.S., so Canelo can stay on that date and bring in a lot of buys.
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