Jose Benavidez Sr. says he’s praying that Jermall Charlo makes weight or the 163-lb catchweight clash against his son, Jose Benavidez Jr. this Saturday night at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas.
Benavidez Sr. states that Jermall (32-0, 22 KOs) looked big this week, and he feels that might come in over the limit this Friday at the weigh-in. If that’s the case, he says there’s a stiff weight penalty that Jermall will need to pay.
Jose Sr. is unhappy about Charlo’s WBC middleweight title not being at stake for this ten round fight against Benavidez Jr because he wanted his son to have a chance to become a world champion.
Obviously, that wouldn’t have been a popular move on Jermall & the WBC’s part if his 160-lb title were on the line for this Saturday, given that Benavidez Jr. isn’t ranked in the top 15 by any of the four sanctioning bodies, and he’s never fought at middleweight.
While the thirteen-year pro Benavidez Jr. is a decent scrapper, he’s NOT a middleweight and it would be blatantly unfair if he were given a world title shot against Jermall over more deserving fighters like Carlos Adames, Austin Williams, or Meirim Nursultanov.
If Benavidez Jr. wins this fight, he’ll likely be given a top 15 ranking at middleweight, and perhaps a title could come soon after.
Top Rank would probably like the idea of having their IBF & WBI 160-lb champion Janibek Alimkhanuly defend against Benavidez Jr.
Benavidez Jr. strong and ready
“I’m strong, I’m ready. I feel like a new person at this weight. I feel strong, I feel ready, and I’m glad to be here,” said Jose Benavidez Jr. to Fighthype, talking about his fight with Jermall Charlo on Saturday night.
It’s great that Benavidez Jr. feels strong at middleweight, but he’s got a formidable task ahead of him against Charlo. Jose Jr lost last year against Danny Garcia at 154 and didn’t look that great.
If Benavidez Jr. can’t beat Garcia, that pretty much shows that he’s NOT going to have much luck against the bigger, stronger & faster Jermall Charlo unless he’s shot to bits from his 2.5-year layoff.
“We’re both going to do what we do, and take this mother f**** out,” said Jose Jr. about him and his brother David Benavidez. “A lot of people said Caleb Plant smacked me. No, nobody is smacking me. Hell, no.
“We got into a scuffle with him and his team back in the day, but I didn’t get smacked by no one. Everyone was saying I got slapped. Nah, nah, I don’t play that. I don’t got b*** in my DNA. I don’t get smacked. Ain’t nobody smacked me.”
It would be a massive shock if both Benavidez brothers lose their fights this Saturday. David Benavidez is facing Demetrius Andrade in the main event at super middleweight, and he’s expected to win. However, it’s still hard to say for sure because his resume is littered with subpar opposition. Benavidez has been a weight bully his entire career, and the guys he’s fought have been the whos who of ham & eggers.
“I’m not trying to play those mind games. I’m just speaking what I got to say. That’s how I feel,” said Benavidez Jr. on whether he’s playing mind games with Jermall Charlo during the build-up for their fight. “That’s how I get it.
“There is. I got the video. You’ll get to see it,” said Jose Jr. about him having video of him dropping Errol Spence Jr. in sparring.
Jose Benavidez Jr. praying Jermall makes weight
“We were ready to fight at 160 for the world title. We already had the contract, and they called me, and they said he couldn’t do 160. They wanted to 165 or 167. I told them, ‘No way, this guy [Jose Jr.] is walking around at 160. No way are we going to do that,'” said Jose Benavidez Sr. to Fight Hub TV about Jermall not wanting his WBC middleweight title to be on the line for the fight.
It’s a good thing that Jermall didn’t tell Jose Benavidez Jr. to get lost when his father Jose Sr. made a big production about the weight because a lot of A-level fighters would have walked away.
Benavidez Jr. has done nothing during his career for him and his dad to be trying to dictate what weight the fight should take place at weight Jermall.
That’s a joke. Jose Jr. is scrub-level, and it’s shocking that this type of fighter would be telling an unbeaten world champion what weight the fight should take place at. Jose Sr. would be laughed out of the room if he tried this tactic with a fighter like Terence Crawford or Tim Tszyu.
“Now, we’re not fighting for the title. We’re fighting at 163. I see him being a little heavier than that. I’m just praying that he comes on weight and that he shows up to the day of the fight.
“Yeah, there is. There’s going to be penalties, big penalties if he [Jermall] goes over 163,” said Jose Sr. when asked if there’s a weight clause where either fighter could be fined if they come in over the 163-lb limit at Friday’s weigh-in.
if Jermall comes in overweight, Jose Jr and his dad will just have to live with it, because it’s not likely going to walk away if he’s over the 163-lb limit.
“I’m hoping & praying that he listens to that he doesn’t come in as heavy as that, and that’s the reason I did that. I’m just hoping that he comes in at 163. I’m just hoping that he shows up because it’s Junior’s life inside the ring, and he walks around at 160.
“He’s 154. It’s not about money. It’s about being a professional and doing what you say you’re going to do. So, I’m hoping he comes in at weight. He looks a little bit heavy right now, but I don’t know what they’re doing his trainers or whatever. I’m just hoping he comes in at weight,” said Jose Sr.
It would be a bad idea for Benavidez Jr. to try and trade with Jermall Charlo because he’s going to get smashed to bits if he tries.
