20 year old David Benavidez fights for his first world title this Friday night on SHO

Absolute beast

He was supposed to fight Anthony Dirrell, but then Dirrell exited the fight with a phantom injury. This is the right fight for him given his age. Hopefully more opponents will be willing to face him once he gets the belt. Yeah I know dirrell pulled out but DeGale is top dog in the division and the winner of the tourney can have a claim to that as well so its difficult to take benavidez title seriously but as you say, its a good step up for his age, in an era when guys dont take these types of steps until they are well into their 20s.

Be good to see Benavidez and Degale fight before the end of the WBSS. Degale should be fit again by the end of the year, the tourney (and Degales money fights) wont be done till May. Degale would probably want a tune up, then if they fight May time it would be perfect for the winner of this fight to fight the winner of the tourney. Ramirez vs Benavidez would be big aswell due to the whole Mex vs Mex Am dynamic, but doubt Uncle bob would let it happen. chunky v benavidez makes sense but it wont happen

Shame about the opponent, but puts him in a great position so early in his career. Would have loved to see him give the bidness to Dirrell, though it could have been a tough fight for him. War Bena :headbang: Dirrell sucks. David would have torched him just like he'll torch Gavril

A real world title (WBA), a pretend world title (IBO), and a kind of super #1 contender "world" title (WBC diamond) Ahhh ok, I'm guessing Eubank is the IBO? Who's the WBA champ? There's just way too many freaking belts to pay attention to.

Hold on, this kid is fighting for a title, Ramirez has a title, and Degale has a title. What are they fighting for in that 168 tournament exactly? A real world title (WBA), a pretend world title (IBO), and a kind of super #1 contender "world" title (WBC diamond)

Hold on, this kid is fighting for a title, Ramirez has a title, and Degale has a title. What are they fighting for in that 168 tournament exactly?

It's scary what this guy did to porky. DeGale had a tough fight with him. Styles make fights I guess because Jack starched porky too but had a super close fight with DeGale.

Really a big fan of everything I've seen from him so far. In the ring he looks amazing for his age, and as a bonus out of the ring he really seems to have his head on straight in interviews. Real easy guy to root for. I think he would have beat Dirrell and I'm pretty sure he's gonna make easy work of his new opponent on Friday. Only 20 years old, Mexican American, and good guy with an exciting style. This is one of the PBC fighters that I think Haymon should be pushing to the mainstream. Hopefully getting this title is his first step in a big career.

Not a real champion unless he fights chunky or one of the title holders in the tournament. BUT its good to see a young fighter stepping up to a certain level. Too many fighters take too long these days. Be good to see Benavidez and Degale fight before the end of the WBSS. Degale should be fit again by the end of the year, the tourney (and Degales money fights) wont be done till May. Degale would probably want a tune up, then if they fight May time it would be perfect for the winner of this fight to fight the winner of the tourney. Ramirez vs Benavidez would be big aswell due to the whole Mex vs Mex Am dynamic, but doubt Uncle bob would let it happen.

Shame about the opponent, but puts him in a great position so early in his career. Would have loved to see him give the bidness to Dirrell, though it could have been a tough fight for him. War Bena :headbang: Dirrell don't want that work.

Not a real champion unless he fights chunky or one of the title holders in the tournament. BUT its good to see a young fighter stepping up to a certain level. Too many fighters take too long these days.He was supposed to fight Anthony Dirrell, but then Dirrell exited the fight with a phantom injury. This is the right fight for him given his age. Hopefully more opponents will be willing to face him once he gets the belt.

Not a real champion unless he fights chunky or one of the title holders in the tournament. BUT its good to see a young fighter stepping up to a certain level. Too many fighters take too long these days.

Yeah he was a big kid but that might be a huge advantage to him at 168 especially with Punch Resistance! David was always overlooked because of his weight on top of his Brother being a Amateur Superstar and completely overshadowing him. He clearly put in the work to get the weight off and keep the weight off! Now he has a chance to make history for himself!

I think he is great and probably the best 168 pound boxer in the world unless there is a better 168 pound boxer I have never seen fight. His hand speed is fantastic.

he would annihilate dirrel. that guy just isn't that good, and you need to have something to keep a puncher honest. can't box that well, can't bang that well, just too mediocre to deal. andre might actually give him problems, but his brain would eventually short out like it usually does when he tires and has to weather a storm. it's too bad, becuse if tyhe younger dirrell had the talent of his brother he'd probably be a handful. I am glad he is getting a fight before he fights a top 10 guy, no matter how weak he is.

Anyone seen Gavril fight before? He has an ok looking record, but no notable opponents. Decent Ko %. saw him on the mayweather - canelo undercard. he was nothing special and i wouldn't have remembered him without looking into it. was wondering where i heard the name. thought i was mixing him up with somebody until i checked his record and saw the MGM grand on there and saw the date.

Agree but the thing is he is only 20. He can learn. Maybe he lucked out because Dirrell might be too much right now. Hopefully they keep him fighting in the west and southwest and build toward a Ramirez fight in a couple years. I think he makes his way to England next year to fight Smith or Degale. he would annihilate dirrel. that guy just isn't that good, and you need to have something to keep a puncher honest. can't box that well, can't bang that well, just too mediocre to deal. andre might actually give him problems, but his brain would eventually short out like it usually does when he tires and has to weather a storm. it's too bad, becuse if tyhe younger dirrell had the talent of his brother he'd probably be a handful.

Definitely needs some defensive adjustments if he is going to have a long career. Offensively he has everything, and due to it being a weak SMW era I can see him beating everyone even at this age and with the flaws he has. Also, unfortunately Dirrell pulled out of the fight with injuries and DB is now facing some guy called Gavril who i havent seen or heard of before. So in reality Medina will still be his biggest step up, but with a title he shouldnt have too much trouble getting opponents, and it puts him in a good position to fight the WBSS winner next year. good decision on their part. dude would have been absolutely creamed by a 20 year old. he's got good management if he's still with haymon. can't say the same for his brother, who booted haymon to the curb for 50 cent IIRC.

Dude's been sparring champions since he was 15 years old. Im a fan of GGG but I believe this dude gave GGG the business in sparring, he was also used by GGG in the Jacobs camp.