Jose Benavidez Sr. says he wants to match David Benavidez up against IBF/WBC/WBO light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev next if they can’t get the fight against Canelo Alvarez in the first quarter of 2024.
Benavidez (28-0, 24 KOs) is coming off a big sixth round stoppage win over Demetrius Andrade last Saturday night, and he wants to use the victory to get the biggest fight possible, preferably against Canelo Alvarez, the undisputed super middleweight champion.
That fight isn’t realistic for the first half of next year, however, so Benavidez will need to look for an alternative opponent. His dad, Jose Sr., is interested in Jermall Charlo as Benavidez’s next opponent.
If not him, he could move up to 175 and face either WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol or Beterbiev. Either of those fights would be huge for Benavidez and very risky because he would be going into them without having tested the waters first against one of the contenders.
Beterbiev (19-0, 19 KOs) is defending against his WBC mandatory Callum Smith (29-1, 21 KOs) on January 13th on ESPN at the Centre Videotron in Quebec City.
Beterbiev on Benavidez’s hit list
“F*** yeah, Beterbiev is a great fighter. He hits like a mule,” said Jose Benavidez Sr. to ESNEWS when asked if IBF/WBC/WBO light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev is on David Benavidez’s list for his next fight.
“All his wins are by knockout. We want to fight. If he’s watching right now. Talk to me; let’s make that fight happen. He’s a monster, but that’s what we want to face. We want to face nothing but the best. Monsters, too. F*** Canelo, we don’t want to fight Canelo.”
Obviously, Jose Sr. is kidding about him not wanting Canelo for Benavidez’s next fight, as that’s all he’s talked about for months. He’s sounded obsessed with Canelo at times, and it would be good if he did choose to forget about him be easier to listen to his interviews without him sounding like a broken record.
“We sparred a lot of times. He beat Canelo. He beat Zurdo Ramirez. Can he beat David Benavidez? Let’s make it happen,” said Jose Sr. about wanting to make a fight between Benavidez and WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol.
“He’s a great fighter. Great sparring a good guy. My respects to Bivol. He’s one of the best at 175. He’s a great fighter. They had good sparring. It’s not the same with 10-ounce gloves.”
Hopefully, Jose Sr. knows what he’s getting Benavidez into my pushing for the Bivol fight between this is going to be a lot tougher than the Andrade, Caleb Plant or David Lemieux fights.
“We want to take that challenge, and prove ourselves. We want to continue proving ourselves. You seen David. The only way we’re going to make history and get better is by facing the real deal,” said Jose Sr.
Benavidez wants Canelo, Bivol & Beterbiev in 2024
“If I go up to 175, the scary thing is I’m going to be even stronger,” said David Benavidez to ESNEWS. “That’s why I’m so interested in that weight class. There are so many good fighters.
Benavidez might not be stronger because he’s already at 175-pounder now. But if he does add more weight, it’ll likely slow him down, making him very hittable for Bivol and Beterbiev.
“I’m not scared of nobody. I really do want to put myself in these tough situations,” said Benavidez. “The only way the magic happens if if you put yourself in these tough situations.
“You’re never going to know what you’re made of unless you put yourself in tough situations like that. I have one chance at this, and I want to do it correctly extremely hard. I want to earn my respect. Not only to the people but to myself that I’ve never ducked nobody.”
It doesn’t matter if Benavidez has never ducked nobody. When he gets up to 175, he’s going to have to figure out how to deal with Bivol and Beterbiev because they’re a lot more talented than the guys he’s faced during his career. You can argue that if they were matched against the same guys he’s fought, they would have an identical 28-0 record.
“Canelo first, and then go up to 175, Bivol, and then maybe Beterbiev,” said Benavidez when asked what fights he wants in 2024. “I know that’s possible, and I can accomplish that.
“I beat all of them. I find ways to win,” said Benavidez when asked what happens in the fights against Canelo, Bivol & Beterbiev. “That’s what makes me so dangerous. I can break down any type of style. You seen me break down Bivol [in sparring]. “It’s going to be great fights.”
It’s good that Benavidez is confident because he’s going to need it when he moves up to 175. Hopefully, he doesn’t wait too longer because Bivol & Beterbiev are getting older.
“People just want to see people going at it. These fights are expensive. These tickets are expensive,” said Benavidez. “People want to get their money’s worth, and that’s what I’m here to do. This is already tailor-made for me because I love to fight this way.
“In all my fights, I go in, and I take their soul away from them in every single fight, and I’m going to keep doing it.
“In the first round, I was hitting him with straight rights, and towards the end, I hit him with a left hook and that really hurt him. I see his eyes water,” said Benavidez about Demetrius Andrade in their fight last Saturday night at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas.
“We, we kept going with the right hand, and then we threw the overhand right. I seen he was coming with his left hands too, so I dipped the left hand and I came with an overhand right, and that was the first knockdown.
“So, I hurt him really bad, but he wasn’t as tough as I thought he would be. I’m not trying to disrespect him in any way, but I just think I prepared myself to a different level this time. I’m just entering my prime, and the performance showed,” said Benavidez.
