David Benavidez has no shortage of HUGE fights on his radar. In an exclusive interview with BoxingScene, Jose Benavidez Sr. makes it clear that David still wants the biggest names at 175lbs including Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev. Benavidez has previously said those are two fights he wants to make as he pursues more titles and major challenges. But there’s another name that could make things very interesting: Andy Ruiz Jr. Jose discusses the possibility of an all-Mexican showdown between Benavidez and the former heavyweight champion, along with David’s plans across multiple divisions. And with a potential Jai Opetaia showdown also building after the pair came face-to-face following Opetaia’s latest victory, Benavidez has some massive options ahead.
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Bob Arum insists Shakur Stevenson will be involved in a significant fight later this year.
The head of Top Rank Inc. suggested in a recent interview that Stevenson, a two-division titlist from Newark, New Jersey, who made his lightweight debut earlier this year, could face the likes of Devin Haney or Vasiliy Lomachenko in the fall.
Arum floated Nov. 16 in Las Vegas as a possible date for Stevenson.
Haney, the undisputed lightweight champion, has not made a determination on his next fight, but he has hinted that it could take place at the junior welterweight limit. He is reportedly looking into multiple options, including a possible fight against WBC 140-pound titlist Regis Prograis. The WBC recently imposed a deadline for Haney to make his decision. If Haney decides to move up, a fight with Stevenson would likely be dead in the water for the foreseeable future.
A fight between Lomachenko and Stevenson would be easier to make, since both fighters share the same promoter. On the other hand, Lomachenko’s handler has suggested their immediate goal is to force a rematch with Haney, who defeated the three-division titlist from Ukraine earlier this summer by unanimous decision.
“Shakur is going to fight later this year in a major fight,” Arum said in an interview with Steve Kim. “Maybe it’ll be against Haney, maybe it’ll be against [Vasiliy] Lomachenko. I don’t know, but the fight’s going to happen.”
Arum pinpointed Nov. 16 as a promising date for Stevenson, as Las Vegas will be hosting the Formula 1 Grand Prix that same weekend.
“Formula 1 will be on that weekend, and people come in really early to see them practice,” Arum said. “So there will be thousands of people in town. We put on a good fight on, we’ll sell it out.”
Sean Nam is the author of Murder on Federal Street: Tyrone Everett, the Black Mafia, and the Last Golden Age of Philadelphia Boxing.
