Shawn Porter teams up with interim WBC lightweight champion David Benavidez to beat WBA “regular” champion David Morrell in their fight in 53 days on February 1 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Like many, Porter feels former WBC 168-lb champion Benavidez gives him the edge in his 12-fight fight against Cuban Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs).
Implications of the title
Benavidez vs. Morrell headlines on PBC on Prime Video PPV. The winner of the fight will be in a position to challenge for a world title against the winner of Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2 rematch.
“55-45 for Benavidez. The thing that I think Benavidez has over Morrell is experience, that’s the real strength,” Shawn Porter told Fight Hub TV about the David Benavidez vs. David Morrell fight on February 1 in Las Vegas.
“Both men are great, but I think Benavidez is more natural at 175 pounds. When you’ve had the experience of having resistance in a 12-round fight, it’s nothing new for you. Morrell had no resistance.
“This fight with Hot Rod, it was a different kind of resistance. It was the resistance of someone who was far away from you and that he was not able to hit. With Benavidez, you can bang with him. He is so fast,” he said Porter.
Benavidez can punch with Morrell if he chooses to be stationary, but he probably won’t do that. Even in his last fight against Radivoje Kalajdzic, he moved a lot and didn’t allow him to land his hard shots. Morrell had the power and the youth advantage in that fight, but he wasn’t using it the way he needed to in order for him to dominate.
“He can box, and that kind of endurance and the mental game with you. It becomes a roller coaster ride. David Benavidez has been in that race. Morrell has not. I favored Benavidez. This, I could see eight rounds, nine rounds before that something like that could happen to Morrell,” Porter said when asked if Benavidez could knock Morrell out early like he did in his sixth round knockout of Demetrius Andrade last year on Nov. 25.
Benavidez’s experience advantage over the 26-year-old is quite significant, which is understandable given that the Cuban fighter only has 11 fights under his belt as a pro.
Best fighters on Benavidez’s resume:
– Oleksandr Gvozdyk
– Caleb Plant
– Demetrius Andrade
– Ronald Gavril
– Anthony Dirrell
– Denis Douglas
In comparison, Morrell has only these three:
– Radivoje Kalajdzic
– Yamaguchi Falcao
– Aidos Yerbossynuly
“Morrell is bigger than anybody else. He’s taller than anybody else. He’s as fast as anybody else. He’s probably stronger than anybody else,” Porter said.
Can Morrell get angry?
Morrell will have to throw more in this fight than he is used to in order to have an attempt to defeat Benavidez because he will be outworked by him if he does not. It won’t impress the judges if Morrell is outscored 8 to 1 by Benavidez.
Having more power won’t help Morrell if Benavidez beats him with volume, as he did his last opponent, Oleksandr Gvozdyk, on June 15. Gvozdyk had the better power and landed the bigger punches, but Benavidez got him. What was the difference.
