Jose Benavidez Sr. is upset that Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol aren’t interested in fighting David Benavidez in between their trilogy match. David had moved up to 175, hoping to get fights against those two fighters after being frozen out by Canelo Alvarez at 168 for five years. Now, Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) is getting the same treatment after light heavyweight.
Benavidez Awaits Bivol-Beterbiev Trilogy Winner
The Bivol vs. Beterbiev 3 trilogy is expected to take place in October or November 2025. Understandably, WBC and WBA ‘regular’ 175-lb champion Benavidez and Jose Sr. aren’t happy that they can’t get a fight against one of them.
Jose Sr. says Bivol & Beterbiev don’t want to fight ‘The Mexican Monster.’ In other words, they’re afraid because of his youth, size, high volume, and power. He’s a bad style for them, especially Bivol. He already gave up his WBC title by choosing not to face Benavidez.
“That’s a fight that if Canelo really wanted to make history and show the fans that he’s a true champion [he’d fight David Benavidez],” said Jose Benavidez Sr. to Fighthype. A lot of people aren’t giving him the credit he deserves. He has all those belts, and he’s holding them hostage.”
The last fighter that Canelo wants to fight is Benavidez. He’s aged too much over his last three fights, and would be food for Benavidez. That last performance by Alvarez against William Scull showed how little he has left at 35.
“I think a fight against David Benavidez would clarify and go out with his shield, but that shadow is always going to be behind him,” said Jose Sr. about Canelo. “We’re ready. We’ve been ready. We waited for him for five years. We went up to 175. We’re happy. We can fight at 168 or 175.”
If Canelo wasn’t willing to fight Benavidez five years ago when he was still in his prime, he’s definitely not going to do it now. He’s lost too much from his game. The chances are, Canelo will lose to Terence Crawford on September 13th.
Benavidez Frustrated by Waiting Game
“We want to defend the title two or three times and fight Zurdo Ramirez. That’s a fight that David wants,” said Jose Sr. “That’s another great fighter, another scary fighter. But right now, we would love to fight Beterbiev or Bivol. That was the plan, but it seems like Bivol and Beterbiev don’t want to fight David, too.”
The only thing Benavidez can do is sit, wait, and hope that the Bivol-Beterbiev 3 winner will choose to fight him. I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were him. David wants to face Callum Smith for his WBO interim light heavyweight title to collect another belt to box whoever emerges triumphant from Bivol’s clash against Beterbiev. However, Callum has chosen to negotiate with Anthony Yarde, and there’s a chance he’ll face him next instead of Benavidez.
“For now, we’re working on Caleb Plant, Anthony Yarde, or whoever deserves to fight for a world title at 168,” said Jose Sr.. “Let the people decide. We’re here to please the fans, and we’re here to keep proving ourselves. We’re here to fight anybody, but those are the fights that David wants.”
It sounds like Jose Jr. is out of the loop, failing to keep up. Plant is fighting Jermall Charlo next if the two win their tune-ups this Saturday in Las Vegas. As I mentioned, Yarde and Smith are in talks for a fight. So, it leaves Benavidez out in the cold.
“We hope so,” said Benavidez Sr., when asked if he thinks there’s a chance that the winner of the Bivol vs. Beterbiev trilogy will fight his son, David. “We want to fight the monsters of the division, and I believe that Beterbiev and Bivol are the monsters. So, we want to fight either or.”
If the Bivol-Beterbiev winner does fight Benavidez, it won’t be until 2026 if at all. Benavidez is going to need to stay busy fighting other opponents while he waits for the smoke to clear between those two. Jose Sr. said he could move up to cruiserweight to take on champion Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez. That would be a great fight.
Why Bivol & Beterbiev Won’t Fight
“I heard they were going to take a fight in between that. So, I thought, ‘Hey, let’s fight one guy. The winner of that will fight the other guy,’ But I don’t think there’s a lot of interest there in fighting the ‘Mexican Monster.’ So, we’re just going to keep our fingers crossed and hopefully that fight happens. Those are the fights that fans want,” said Benavidez Sr.
