Official: David Benavidez team has offered fight to David Morrell
Sep 26, 2024 • 10:46 AM ET
David Benavidez woke up Wednesday with an epiphany.
“I don’t want to fight somebody who doesn’t mean something for my career. I only want to fight the best available. The best out there now is David Morrell.”
With that, unbeaten WBC interim light-heavyweight champion Benavidez connected with a representative of his team and requested that he offer Cuba’s unbeaten light-heavyweight Morrell a fight.
A boxing official connected to the situation told BoxingScene Thursday that an offer from Phoenix’s Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) has been sent over to representatives of Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs), and they are waiting to hear back.
“What’s so nice about this is that it’s the boxer making the decision … he’s the one reaching out to make the fight,” the boxing official said.
Both boxers fight under the Premier Boxing Champions banner. Messages left to PBC were not immediately returned Thursday.
Benavidez was previously considering a proposal to fight Philadelphia’s 35-year-old Jesse Hart (31-3, 25 KOs).
“PBC loves the (Benavidez-Morrell) fight, everybody loves the fight … because it’s the best possible (light-heavyweight) fight,” the official said. “Morrell has a big mouth, and he’s said things before, things like (Benavidez) has chickened out from fighting him. So we expect this offer to be accepted.”
Benavidez, 27, and Morrell, 26, both opted this year to leave the super-middleweight division because they couldn’t land a title fight against then-undisputed champion Canelo Alvarez.
The light-heavyweight division is bracing for its ultimate showdown, the Oct. 12 undisputed title fight between unbeaten Russians Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol.
“After that fight, there’s no way the WBC champion can fight anyone other than (a victorious) Benavidez or he will be stripped,” the official said. “Benavidez is doing everything – including pursuing this fight against Morrell – like a real champion.”
Former WBC super-middleweight champion Benavidez defeated former light-heavyweight Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15, and Morrell was less impressive in his light-heavyweight debut, but still won, defeating Radivoje Kalajdzic by unanimous decision Aug. 3 in Los Angeles.
“I imagine Benavidez will get more money. He’s the ‘A’ fighter,” the official said. “But I think both guys will do well. It’ll be a good pay-per-view.”
The issue beyond Morrell’s response is figuring out when and where to place the fight.
Putting it on Dec. 14 would put it in competition with two lesser bouts: Jaime Munguia fighting in Tijuana and welterweight Alexis Rocha heading a Golden Boy Promotions/DAZN card in Ontario, Calif.
If they wait until Dec. 21, the pay-per-view heavyweight title fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury will stream earlier that day.
Initially, the Benavidez side likes the idea of placing the bout at MGM Grand in Las Vegas. If the December dates don’t work out, they will also consider early 2025.
Lance Pugmire has been a full-time boxing writer for nearly 20 years, serving now as BoxingScene’s U.S. Senior Writer and assistant producer for ProBoxTV’s “BoxingScene Today.” Pugmire capped a near 20-year career at the Los Angeles Times (sports investigations, NHL/MLB beat work, law enforcement/courts and boxing/UFC) to join The Athletic, and then USA Today. Pugmire’s stint at The Times started with the first Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez fight and the Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather Jnr then-record pay-per-view, leading through a slew of ringside assignments at major bouts, including Mayweather-Pacquiao, Mayweather-Canelo and the Canelo-Golovkin trilogy. Lance’s appreciation for boxing is rooted in his admiration and appreciation for the fighters, gladiators who have proven to be the most forthcoming and candid of all the athletes he has interviewed over a career dating to 1990. Lance was honored to be named the 2022 winner of the Boxing Writers Association of America Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence and he’s collected many BWAA writing awards in categories ranging from breaking news to deep-dive long features.
