Demetrius Andrade wonders if WBA light heavyweight champion David Morrell has arms long enough to get around David Benavidez's guard when they meet on February 1 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Benavidez arrives
Andrade had problems getting his shots through Benavidez's guard due to his long arms in their fight last year and was eventually stopped in the sixth round. He was surprised by how big Benavidez was, it was too big for him.
Cuban Morel has a much longer range than Benavidez, at 78″ compared to 74, so he shouldn’t have the same issues that Andrade did. Demetrius began his professional career at 154 and moved up to 168 in 2023. He had only fought once in the weight class against Demond Nicholson before facing Benavidez.
Benavidez's arrival, weight and youth appear to be causing problems for Andrade. He looked a lot heavier, like a light heavyweight or cruiserweight champion fighting a middleweight.
“Because he was a big, strong guy, he was able to take it in. He was a lot heavier than me,” Demetrius Andrade said. Combat Center TV On his loss to David Benavidez on November 25, 2023.
“After that fight (Benavidez vs. Oleksandr Gvozdyk at 175), he said, ‘I can still make 168,’ because he felt the weight difference. (Benavidez) couldn’t do what he can do when he’s not a heavyweight.
“Right now, he's in a good match against David Morrell. They're two guys of similar size. I think David Morrell is talented. I don't know if he has the experience to really beat David. (Morrell) is a big kid. He's got good speed, but he's a little wild with his punches.” “This comes with experience, of course.”
Benavidez did not look good in his 175-year-old debut against Oleksandr Gvozdyk last summer on June 15, and was outplayed the entire fight by the stronger fighter. His strength seemed weak against the weight, and he was lucky to get the decision. If Gvozdyk had been a more popular fighter, he would have gotten the win because he landed the better shots.
Can Morel adapt?
“David (Benavidez) has long arms. Muriel is bigger than me,” Andrade said. “When you punch him (Benavidez), his arms are too long to hit him. You have to select your shots against him. I don't know if Morel has that.
“I'm a sniper, and with his height David was able to block a lot of shots from me. So, you have to set him up with some clean shots and a drive,” Andrade said.
