Roy Jones Jr. is against the many boxing enthusiasts who believe Saul “Canelo” Alvarez is ducking David Benavidez.
A former four-division world champion – Jones – believes Canelo (61-2-2, 39 KOs) is only delaying the fight with Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) to make the best out of it at the right time.
Jones’ comment is in contradiction with the likes of legendary Floyd Mayweather, Mike Tyson, Andre Ward, and Paulie Malignaggi, among others, who have criticized the 34-year-old’s decision to avoid what has been described by many as the biggest 168-pound fight today.
Commenting on a possible Canelo-Benavidez bout, the retired Jones said he does not believe that Canelo is scared of Benavidez.
“There’s a real risk there for him in taking the fight,” Jones told Fight Hub TV. “I mean, of course, he’s like any other champion. He wants to make you guys salivate what y’all want to make or pay for, which is smart.
“I don’t think he’s scared of Benavidez, but Benavidez is a tough order for anybody right now, especially if you’re at the top of your game because he’s very busy.”
Canelo currently holds the WBC and WBO 168 pounds titles having been stripped of his IBF crown after the Mexican announced his Sept. 14 clash with Edgar Berlanga in Las Vegas. Canelo has held the titles since 2021 when he earned an 11th-round TKO win over Caleb Plant.
Throughout his sterling career, Canelo has faced stiffer oppositions such as Mayweather, Gennadiy Golovkin, Billy Joe Saunders, Dmitrii Bivol, Jermell Charlo, and Jaime Munguia among others. However, many believe he should take on the dreaded undefeated Benavidez to cement his legacy.
Meanwhile, the inability of Benavidez to get a shot at fighting Canelo forced the 27-year-old Arizona native to move up to 175 pounds to face Oleksandr Gvozdyk in a WBC interim light heavyweight championship fight.
When asked if Canelo was shying away from fighting Benavidez due to the Mexican’s fear of losing his status as king of 168, Jones disagreed with the assertion despite admitting to the fight being risky for Canelo.
“He’s big. He’s effective. He’s aggressive. All the things you don’t want in a fighter, David’s gonna be there as that opponent. You get me? So, everything you don’t wanna see in your opponent, David’s gonna be there as his. Now does that mean they can’t beat David? No. But he wants to make sure that he makes you guys wait and ask and beg long enough that y’all won’t pay for it, then he’ll take his chance because he knows too that it is a risky chance he’s taking.
“Now, he ain’t gonna say what the heck he is, but he should be a tad bit hungrier than Canelo for that spot. You know what I’m saying? Canelo was in that spot. David wants that spot. So, it should be the hungry guy who has to be careful because Canelo can punch.”
Jones noted that Canelo must be hungry for another big fight to either make the Benavidez or Terence “Bud” Crawford fight happen.
“It’s just a matter of just how hungry Canelo will be. It’s a weird thing because, like, when you think about it, what’s the biggest fight that Canelo can be in at this point? And you would say either Crawford or Benavidez.”
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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