It seems as though David Benavidez has given up all hope of ever being able to lure Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez into the ring with him. As fans know, “The Mexican Monster” has been calling and calling for a fight with Canelo, with so many fans and numerous experts stating how Canelo should do the right thing and take the fight.
Recently, Canelo, who calls his own shots, spoke about wanting a gargantuan purse of $150million to make the fight happen, and plenty of critics let their thoughts be known in no uncertain terms. Now, Benavidez says he has had enough of Canelo’s “bull s**t” and that he will focus fully on big fights in the light heavyweight division.
“With Canelo, it’s that bulls**t, ‘Oh, he needs to be respectful.’ I won’t bow my knee to anybody because I’ve earned my shot,” Benavidez said on The Fresh and Fit Podcast. “This fight isn’t happening because he wants $150million. That’s telling me he’s scared. I don’t think that Canelo fight is going to happen, so I’ve gotta move on. These guys at 175 pounds are some killers. Now my mind is one hundred percent focused on them.”
While Benavidez, 28-0(24) is sure to give us some great action fights at light heavyweight, it really is a bad loss that the Canelo fight, a guaranteed war if ever there was one, will not happen. Things could change, but it does seem as though that particular ship has sailed. How the “ducking” of Benavidez will affect Canelo’s legacy will only be known some years from now, but it sure isn’t a good look. Mexican warriors are known for taking on any and all challengers; especially challengers who are openly saying they are scared of them.
Doesn’t Canelo have a strong urge to fight Benavidez and silence him? It seems not. And it’s our loss, along with it being Benavidez’ loss.
Looking ahead, Benavidez against the Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol winner, and guys like Oleksandr Gvozdynk and one or two other light-heavies, really would be nothing but great for the division. Can 27 year old Benavidez rule the world at 175?