David Benavidez revealed on Instagram today that his fight against “regular” WBA lightweight champion David Morrell is a done deal.
Mike Coppinger reports the Benavidez vs. Morrell fight will take place on January 25 in Las Vegas. It will be on PBC on PPV.
This move by Benavidez could blow up in his face because the Cuban Morrell is a much bigger puncher, younger, and has superior technical skills. The only thing Morrell lacks is the high production and punching experience of Benavidez. On top of that, Morrell is better suited to fight at 175 than he is. Benavidez is still punching like a 168-pounder but with the size of a lightweight.
Benavidez says he had many options, but he wanted to fight the “best” opponent possible, and that was the undefeated Cuban Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs). The winner of the fight will be in line to challenge the winner of Saturday’s undisputed championship between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol.
Again, it’s a risky match-up for Benavidez, 27, because he’s already the WBC mandatory for Beterbiev’s 175lb championship. However, Benavidez needs a win over Morrell to create interest in challenging Beterbiev or Bivol. Neither of those two fighters mentioned Benavidez, and one reason for that is his lackluster performance in his debut at 175 against Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15.
Benavidez’s stock dropped badly after that fight because he barely won. The judges who worked the fight in Las Vegas gave Benavidez a wide decision, but it seemed almost even in the end. In the second half of the fight, Gvozdyk got the better of a weak and tired Benavidez.
“There were a lot of names on the table, but I wanted to give my fans the best fight possible. I reached out to David Morrell and his team to make this happen, and we made the contract. This fight is really going to be a banger. Two of the best in the division and two titles on the line. Date and location to be announced soon Instagram today, they reveal that he will next fight WBA “regular” lightweight champion David Morrell.
Morrell defeated Radivoje Kalajdzic by a 12-round unanimous decision in his debut at 175 on August 3rd in Los Angeles. It wasn’t a great performance from Morrell as he failed to put away Kalajdzic despite being injured several times in the contest. Still, as good as Morrell looked in that fight, he fought much better than Benavidez in his debut at 175 against Gvozdyk.
