Jermall Charlo expressed respect for David Benavidez on Tuesday, but he berated Benavidez’s older brother during much of their virtual press conference.
The unbeaten WBC middleweight champion dismissed Jose Benavidez Jr. as “a scrub” and predicted that an easy victory over him November 25 will lead to Charlo battling Benavidez’s younger brother in 2024. David Benavidez is a 4-1 favorite to defeat Demetrius Andrade in Showtime Pay-Per-View’s main event the night Charlo and Jose Benavidez Jr. will square off in the co-feature – a 10-round, non-title fight at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino’s Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas.
“Imma beat yo ass on the 25th and Imma beat your brother ass, too,” Charlo said. “Watch. Shut up, n-gga! Imma beat you and your brother ass.”
Detractors have criticized Charlo for holding on to the WBC middleweight title, even though he hasn’t fought in 28 months. Charlo claimed Tuesday that he doesn’t care about “trophies” and admitted that boxing Benavidez at a catch weight of 163 pounds could lead to him moving up to the 168-pound limit to fight David Benavidez when they return to the ring next year.
“This is the first step to like – you know what I mean? – getting to the next weight class,” Charlo said. “Imma use the little big brother, wit’ his little man syndrome. I’mma use him.”
Houston’s Charlo (32-0, 22 KOs), a former IBF junior middleweight champ, has never weighed in at more than 160 pounds in 15 years as a pro. Phoenix’s Benavidez (28-2-1, 19 KOs) has not officially weighed more than 158¾ pounds in 31 pro bouts, but David Benavidez is a full-fledged super middleweight who has fought at or near the division’s cap of 168 pounds throughout his 10-year pro career.
David Benavidez wants to challenge Canelo Alvarez next for the Mexican superstar’s IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO super middleweight titles. The WBC interim 168-pound champ could nevertheless need a viable alternative to Alvarez for his first fight of 2024 if the Guadalajara native faces someone other than David Benavidez when he comes back to the ring May 4.
Charlo wouldn’t predict whether Benavidez (27-0, 23 KOs) or Andrade (32-0, 19 KOs) will win, but he would welcome back-to-back bouts with the Benavidez brothers.
“Imma beat both of they ass,” Charlo said. “Imma beat him and his brother ass. Imma beat both of they ass. Charlo gonna stick forever in your f------- bloodline – watch.”
The long-inactive Charlo has opened as an 8-1 favorite to beat Benavidez, according to FanDuel sportsbook. The 31-year-old Benavidez is just 1-1-1 since Terence Crawford stopped him in the 12th round of their fight for Crawford’s WBO welterweight title five years ago, yet he is confident he’ll make the 33-year-old Charlo regret choosing him as the opponent for Charlo’s comeback bout.
“He’s gonna retire after I beat his ass,” Benavidez said. “That’s what’ll happen. He ain’t fighting no one else.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.