David Benavidez Eyes Canelo Alvarez

By: Sean Crose

While there’s a lot of well-deserved love for Kyrone Davis after his opponent’s incredibly last-minute performance against David Benavidez over the weekend, Benavidez himself deserves some credit for it. defeated a brave, skilled and determined opponent. Not only did Benavidez emerge victorious on Saturday night in Phoenix, but his belief in his own strength led to Davis’ being mercifully and intelligently eliminated in the seventh installment. In short, Benavidez has stepped into the ring with a very live opponent, and could come out of it with another win on his record.

Now, of course, the boxing world is looking to the future. With Canelo Alvarez successfully stopping the talented Caleb Plant last weekend to become the undisputed super-middleweight world champion, Benavidez was seen as a logical next opponent. However, Canelo has plenty of next logical options. He could still take on Gennady Golovkin in a third-place match or face undefeated middleweight Jermall Charlo, or even move up to light heavyweight again. However, as far as Benavidez is concerned, there is one opponent for him to face that makes sense in the world and that is the biggest star in boxing.

“I feel like I deserved that fight,” Benavidez announced after his win on Saturday night, “so until I get that fight, I’m going to keep knocking whoever they are.” put it in front of me.” Benavidez added that “fans will continue to demand that fight.” The man may be right. While there are certainly plenty of big-name opponents for Canelo to face next, the thought of a Canelo-Benavidez showdown is not exciting at all. “I feel like a bigger guy,” Benavidez told reporters. “I’m a stronger guy, I have a lot of speed.”

Not that Benavidez felt Canelo would go for a walk in the park. Far away from it. “I knew a fight with Canelo wouldn’t be easy,” he said. “I am ready to give my heart and soul to win. And I know I can get it done. ” And if he can’t finish it? “Obviously this is a very tough fight for me and Canelo,” he insists, “the hardest fight of my career. No guarantees. But the work you put in is still guaranteed. I am willing to work as hard as I can to make sure I win and be in the best possible mental and physical state of my life.”