Coach Jose Benavidez Sr. predicts that his son, “Mexican Monster” David Benavidez, will go to “destruction” David Morrell in his 11 Days light heavyweight title fight on February 1st on PBC on Prime Video PPV in Las Vegas.
This fight will show whether Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) is just…forged“The Beast,” he lives off the hype he gets from fighting younger opposition at 168, or if it’s real. Morell says he has seen fighters like Benavidez and considers it 100% “fake.”
Now that Benavidez is fighting at 175 against a younger fighter who is the same size as him, but with more power, he could be exposed by Morel (11-0, 9 KOs).
Exit strategy already planned?
According to Morell's team, Benavidez is hovering between 215 and 220. So, he has the size to reinvent himself at cruiserweight if he falls short against the talented Cuban on February 1st.
If Benavidez loses, he may need to decide if he wants to move up to cruiserweight to try and salvage his career in that weight class. Staying at 175 would be a mistake for him because if he can't beat Morell, he certainly won't succeed against Artur Beterbiev or Dmitry Bivol.
Jose Sr. is already discussing Exit strategydiscussing the possibility of Benavidez moving up to cruiserweight to challenge WBA and WBO champion Gilberto “Zordo” Ramirez for his belts. He will have to wait his turn until IBF champion Jay Obitaya faces Zordo in a three-belt unification. But either of these guys would be open to fighting Benavidez after his loss to Morel.
Even if he was fired by Morel, they would be willing to fight him because he would still be popular, and would likely have excuses to explain his loss. He cited injuries to explain why he performed poorly against Oleksandr Gvozdyk, and the fans believed him. He could do the same thing if he loses to Morell, and people will give him a pass.
“We're 100% committed to Morel. He's a tough fighter, a younger fighter. He's a two-time world champion and he's hungry. We're not underestimating this guy,” Jose Benavidez Sr. said. Shawn Zettel About David Morrell, who David Benavidez will face on February 1st.
“We're there 100 percent. David (Benavidez) is 28 years old. In my opinion, I think David will be destroyed by (Morrell). Let's focus on that now. David definitely has big dreams. He wants to fight the winner. Who doesn't Winner of Bivol vs. Beterbiev fight? Maybe a fight with Zordo Ramirez at cruiserweight.
“Those fights are great. Great monsters in this division, and there are great opportunities with this heavyweight. Zordo Ramirez will fight the other guy (IBF cruiserweight champion Jay Obitaya) for the belt, and hopefully we'll get the opportunity to do that as well,” Benavidez Sr. said. “.
