Sergio Mora says David Benavidez should stop undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev if he gets past ‘regular’ WBA champion David Morrell in their fight on February 1 next month.
Too much power
Mora believes Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KO) has too much power for ‘Mexican Monster’ Benavidez, who hasn’t looked like the fighter he was in the past at 168 when he moved up to 175 last year against Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15.
Mora wants Benavidez to maneuver carefully to avoid Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivolo, two monsters at 175, and focus on fights against guys coming in at 168, like Canelo Alvarez.
Chris Mannix thinks it’s a great idea for Benavidez to fight Beterbiev because it will give him a giant A salary of 10 million dollars. If he beats Arturo, he will hold all four belts at 175 and will have something to entice Canelo to fight him.
“The way to get to Canelo Alvarez is to beat Artur Beterbiev and become the undisputed champion at 175. I bet Canelo would go for that fight then,” Chris Mannix said on his YouTube channeltalking about how David Benavidez can win the Canelo Alvarez fight with a win over undisputed light heavyweight champion Arturo Beterbiev.
“Beterbiev would be more than a 2 to 1 favorite. Maybe a 4-to-1 favorite against Benavidez,” said Sergio Mora. “I’m a big fan of David Benavidez. At 168 years old, he was a monster. At 175, it must be moved in a careful manner.
“You can’t put him among the monsters. You can’t put him with guys who are going to give him problems with power like Beterbiev or the footwork and experience of Buffalo. You have to do the math. If Benavidez wants to fight the best at 175, he has to fight guys who are going up in weight like Canelo,” Mora said.
The way Benavidez looked in his fight against former WBC 175lb champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk, he will have a lot of trouble against Beterbiev as he punches him too much. Benavidez collided with Gvozdyk and got hit hard. Afterwards, he looked like a loser, with a beaten face and an expression of resignation.
Benavidez knew he had met his equal. Fighting Beterbiev would be much worse because he would hit harder and have many opportunities to land his shots.
Destined for destruction
“I wouldn’t put him as a favorite against Beterbiev. He’s got dynamite in those hands, and those are heavy hands. Yes, Benavidez will bring speed. The speed will not be enough, and I think Beterbiev will also have the technique. Technique, strength. It will be destructive,” said Mora.
