To David Morrell, a fight with David Benavidez is a challenge many boxers would run away from. But Morrell says he’s determined to make his mark by embracing what seems to be the biggest fight of his pro career.
On February 1, Cuba’s Morrell, 26, will come up against 28-year-old former WBC 168-pound champion David Benavidez of Phoenix, Arizona at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Morrell says he’s ready for the challenge.
“I see this opportunity as a way for me to shut some people up,” said Morrell in an interview with BoxingScene. “I want to be able to show the people that say that I’m not ready to be at this level that I can do it. I want to just prove them all wrong. And then also at the same time, I want to make my family proud.
“I want to make my country proud and be able to go out there and represent the way I know I can.”
Morrell, 11-0 (9 KOs), made an instant impact at light heavyweight last August when he recorded a 12-round unanimous decision win over Serbian Radivoje Kalajdzic.
Meanwhile, Benavidez, 29-0 (24 KOs), was one of the fighters to beat at 168 before moving up to campaign at 175 after failing to land a fight with superstar Canelo Alvarez. The Arizona native made his 175-pound debut against Oleksandr Gvozdyk last June, decisioning the Ukrainian en route to winning the WBC interim title.
Despite acknowledging Benavidez’s strength, Morrell says he’s not moved by Benavidez’s style and rich resume.
“It’s simple, man. His only move is to attack, that’s it. He’s a strong guy, a big guy, but, after these (attributes), he doesn’t have anything. Do you ever see Benavidez with a defensive move or whatever? So, he only attacks because he’s the bigger guy for his opponents.
“I respect every fighter. But I would say that the thing I respect the most, not just from Benavidez but from any fighter in any division, is the sheer fact of having the guts and the spirit to step into the ring and go hand to hand, face to face with an opponent that’s at your level.
“So I’m gonna respect that always from Benavidez and from any fighter in any division that is willing to face a challenge like that.”
When asked how he envisions the fight playing out against Benavidez, Morrell said, “Everybody is not easy but I know this fight is going to be a knockout. It’s really going to be a really, really tough fight”.
Bernard Neequaye is a sports journalist with a specialty in boxing coverage. He wrote a boxing column titled “From The Ringside” in his native Ghana for years. He can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) at @BernardNeequaye, LinkedIn at Bernard Neequaye and through email at [email protected].
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