Reaching the pinnacle in boxing means having the luxury to choose your opponents at will – often times unfairly so. Canelo Alvarez is on course for another high-profile bout against Terence Crawford after winning undisputed super middleweight champion status last month, leaving David Benavidez who once served as mandatory challenger against Canelo without anyone to compete against in order to claim Canelo’s WBC super middleweight championship belt.
Benavidez had long waited his turn as Canelo’s mandatory challenger; holding onto that status for over a year. Unfortunately, though, due to lack of enforcement by boxing authorities and Benavidez being moved down in weight class from light heavyweight category instead of challenge Canelo himself; instead facing David Morrell instead. Now set for their bout later this month at lightweight class level instead.
However, the planning of Canelo’s fight with Crawford didn’t sit well with Jose Benavidez Sr., David’s father. In a recent conversation with Fight Hype, he expressed his dismay, suggesting that opting for Crawford over Benavidez was an embarrassing decision. He highlighted that both his son and Canelo are too dominant for Crawford, indicating such a matchup would not be competitive.
Jose’s skepticism about the fairness of the fight stems from his belief that Canelo’s physicality would overpower Crawford, rendering the fight uninteresting. From his perspective, this potential bout fails to present the competitive edge that fights at this level should possess.
Forecasting the Outcome: Benavidez on Canelo vs. Crawford
David Benavidez shared his observations regarding Canelo-Crawford clash during a talk with Sean Zittel and acknowledged both Crawford’s technical skills, but doubted his power at higher weight categories. After watching Crawford move up from 140 lbs, Benavidez noticed an evident decrease in knockout power – an essential consideration when you consider that Canelo would require climbing two divisions before meeting Crawford at super middleweight. Benavidez respects Crawford as an exceptional talent while emphasizing weight classes importance while suggesting Canelo may hold advantage in this fight.
Benavidez camp’s view that competition shouldn’t always trump strategic selection reveals much. Their views stemmed from feeling ignored or concern for sport’s integrity – both emotional and professional drives may contribute to this sentiment.