In this week’s mailbag, we tackle your thoughts on the four winners from this past weekend’s big pay-per-view – David Benavidez, Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, Devin Haney and Abdullah Mason – as well as one of the defeated fighters, Anthony Yarde.
In particular, we cover whether Benavidez should stick around at light heavyweight or move up as planned to cruiserweight; what’s next for Rodriguez; whether Haney’s winning ways are also winning over fans; what Mason still needs to work on; and Yarde’s history of falling short against the top guys at 175lbs.
Want to be featured in the mailbag? Comment or ask a question in the comments section below. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. We also may select readers’ comments from other BoxingScene stories.
HOPE DAVID BENAVIDEZ ISN’T DONE AT LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
I think David Benavidez should hang around at 175lbs. I mean, he’s not there for long; there are two guys – Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev – and unfortunately for him, they’re going for a trilogy. It seems Turki Alalshikh wants Bivol-Beterbiev III, and big cash is on the line, so Benavidez can't expect to just jump in the middle of that.
There are other fights at 175 to keep him ticking over until one of the other two fighters is available to do a unification with him. It’s not that bad, actually. He’s got a good profile now and will get nice paydays; I’m sure this one in Saudi Arabia was decent.
-Smash
David Greisman’s response: The specific circumstances are far from identical, but I’m sure this feels like deja vu for David Benavidez. He’s once again the top contender to the throne, and once again the king of his division has something else in mind aside from facing Benavidez.
It’s no wonder, then, that Benavidez already had his next move in mind even before his victory over Anthony Yarde was official. He played the waiting game before at super middleweight, where Saul “Canelo” Alvarez wanted nothing to do with him and took on opponents who were less deserving than Benavidez was.
I can’t blame Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev for preferring their rubber match. They’re either the number one and two light heavyweights, or numbers one and three with Benavidez in the middle. The first two Bivol-Beterbiev fights were close and, as you said, the powers that be seem to want to put them together one more time.
So if you’re Benavidez, you can wait and take on the second and third tiers at 175lbs, or you can go for even bigger fights. Benavidez will get far more money for a Cinco de Mayo Weekend clash against Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez at cruiserweight than he would for, say, matches at light heavyweight against Callum Smith or Imam Khataev. And beyond that, there’s still no guarantee that a fight with the Bivol-Beterbiev III winner would even happen. Beterbiev turns 41 in January. Bivol turns 35 in December. They’re both still performing at a high level but could opt for other pursuits – in or out of the ring.
Benavidez has to look out for himself. A win over Ramirez opens up more doors at cruiserweight without necessarily closing them at light heavyweight. There’s admittedly always the question of whether a fighter who moves up on the scales will be able, never mind willing, to come back down. And 25lbs is a lot to drop.
ANTHONY YARDE JUST CAN’T (AND WON’T) WIN THE BIG ONE
Valiant effort, maybe, but just like Anthony Yarde’s previous attempts. Let's face it: Yarde has probably exceeded expectations, but he isn't world class.
-tokon
Tris Dixon’s response: The case of Anthony Yarde will always be fascinating to me. Aside from Lyndon Arthur, who he’s fought three times in three very different fights, he has either fought people he was expected to flatten or metaphorical killers in Sergey Kovalev – in arguably the Russian’s last big performance – Artur Beterbiev, and now David Benavidez.
In the U.K., it’s been frustrating as there have been some great possible domestic fights with Yarde against the likes of Callum Johnson and, of course, Joshua Buatsi. Yarde is 34 now. Had he boxed the traditional path of going for the British, Commonwealth and European titles, he may have been more prepared for the big shots when they came.
It’s important to note, however, that Yarde started late and had a very short amateur career. Anyone who leaves this sport with their house paid off has done well. He has done infinitely more than that, so on a human level, it’s a case of job done. If Yarde were to retire tomorrow, he would have probably exceeded his own expectations in life at some point, if not his own in boxing.
DEVIN HANEY WINS FIGHTS BUT NOT FANS
The problem with Devin Haney is he keeps finding these weaselly ways to win. Running, clutching, and avoiding engagement. I don't know if I'm going to buy one of his fights again.
-RockyKO
Owen Lewis’ response: Let’s first stress that Haney is operating within the rules, or at any rate what referees will let him get away with. Short of cheating, there’s no wrong way to win a fight, and I admire Haney for being devastatingly effective at winning fights.
That said, you’re certainly justified in your opinion. I even share parts of it.
I don’t think Haney’s style, hostile to action to an exasperating degree at times, is anybody’s platonic ideal of watchable boxing. It’s very successful, but you’re under no obligation to like it or pay for it. Is that a problem with Haney, though? He’s now a three-division world champion and, seemingly, in command of an arctic welterweight class. He’s had an accomplished, lucrative career already. I imagine he doesn’t much care whether people like to watch him.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR BAM RODRIGUEZ?
So, what’s next for Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez? Will he try to get that last junior bantamweight belt from the winner of Willibaldo Garcia vs Kenshiro Teraji? That could take forever, since the winner of Garcia-Teraji has to face Andrew Moloney next, as per the IBF.
-ShoulderRoll
Lucas Ketelle’s response: “Bam” is so special that it seems like a formality that he will become undisputed, but you bring up a good point: How long would it take?
Rodriguez is in his prime, and by outclassing the second-best fighter in the division, Fernando Martinez, the only intrigue left is to see Rodriguez move up in weight and face tough opponents who have a size advantage. At this point, I have come to terms with the fact that anyone the same size as Rodriguez at this point in his career has little to no chance against him.
Whether fair or unfair, Rodriguez's final voyage is to see if he can do what Vasiliy Lomachenko and Naoya Inoue did and move up in weight to dethrone titleholders. Rodriguez deserves to be the undisputed champion. Yet if that doesn’t happen, seeing him face the likes of Takuma Inoue, Tenshin Nasukawa or even Junto Nakatani one day would be just as exciting to fans of the sport. Let's hope we get to see it one day.
EVALUATING ABDULLAH MASON AFTER THE NOAKES WIN
The first fighter that fought Abdullah Mason back! Sam Noakes is a basic but tough fighter and hit Mason all night long. Mason needs to improve a lot before fighting a fighter with true talent. He's good, but he won't be undefeated long if he doesn't work on his defense.
-Brittney1229
David Greisman’s response: We can’t quite call Sam Noakes the first person to fight Abdullah Mason back, given that Yohan Vasquez dropped Mason twice in the first round a year ago. But Noakes was definitely Mason’s best foe to date. Mason was superior, but he also showed that he’ll need to do even better if he is going to continue to step up his level of opposition.
It’s far too early to think of unification bouts with the cream of the crop at 135lbs – Gervonta Davis (WBA) and Shakur Stevenson (WBC). Nor is there any need to rush into a collision with the winner of Raymond Muratalla’s IBF title defense vs. Andy Cruz. Mason is just 21. He has room to grow. He deserves time to grow, even as we expect more of any fighter once they have a world title around their waist.
The WBO’s lightweight rankings, after the now-vacant No. 1 spot (where Mason was) and Noakes’ No. 2 position, reads Alan Abel Chaves, Gabriel Flores, William Zepeda, Joe Cordina, Albert Bell, Shu Utsuki, Jadier Herrera, Lucas Bahdi, Rene Tellez Giron, Joshua Pagan, Christopher Mouafo, Mitchell Smith and Cameron Vuong.
My guess is that Mason and his team will be hard at work in the gym, looking at footage of the win over Noakes and drilling all sorts of improvements so that he tightens up his defense, and so he makes choices on offense that give him the time and ability to get out of range. Remember that Mason had never before been past six rounds before Noakes and suddenly found himself in a hotly contested 12-round battle.
Top Rank and Mason’s team will probably pick someone from the WBO’s top 15 they feel is safe enough to test what they’ve worked on. The fact of the matter is Mason might have been taking on that level of opponent anyway had Keyshawn Davis not lost the WBO belt on the scales; they saw an opportunity to crown Mason early and took it.
I imagine Mason’s team might also look at hosting him in Cleveland, since selling tickets is even more important given the current lack of a TV deal covering Top Rank’s fighter pay.
Want to be featured in the mailbag? Comment or ask a question in the comments section below. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. We also may select readers’ comments from other BoxingScene stories.
