Middleweight title contender Shane Mosley Jr. believes adolescent fighter David Benavidez’s upside will allow him to beat Canelo Alvarez if the two fight this year.
The 27-year-old Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) is seven years younger than the 34-year-old Canelo Alvarez and has yet to have such tough fights as he has against fighters such as Gennady Golovkin, Miguel Cotto, Jaime Munguia, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Dmitry Bivol and Sergey Kovalev.
Benaviez’s resume is tender in comparison, and that’s one reason he’s been criticized so much. He had an straightforward ride to the top, with only one notable name on his main roster, Caleb Plant, and Canelo has already knocked him out.
Considering how huge Benavidez is, he can’t be called a true super middleweight, as he drops from delicate heavyweight to 168 pounds, allowing him to compete with smaller fighters.
Benavidez: Up-to-date-day Chavez Jr.?
You could argue that Benavidez is a weight bully, and has been throughout his career. He is doing what Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. did earlier in his career, dropping massive amounts of weight to compete at 154 and 160 and winning fights against high-profile opponents.
Benavidez is this era’s version of Chavez Jr., with the way he retreats to take advantage of smaller opposition in a weight class he shouldn’t be fighting in because of his huge delicate heavyweight frame. What Benavidez is doing is the same thing Chavez Jr. did.
Younger fans who didn’t follow the sport years ago aren’t aware of Chavez Jr.’s success back then. They only know him for who he became later in his career when he couldn’t break down enough to compete at 154 and 160.
He was a completely different fighter in the early days, when he had a huge advantage over his junior middleweight and middleweight opponents. He did what Benavidez does now, fighting well below his weight class.
The Early Success and Fall of Chavez Jr.
Chavez Jr. found great success by gradually dropping down in weight to compete in those weight classes, defeating many top contenders and winning the middleweight world title in 2011. However, when he was no longer able to make 160 pounds, his career took a nosedive.
During Chavez Jr.’s heyday, from 2008 to 2014, he defeated the following quality fighters:
-Andy Lee -Brian Vera – Sebastian Żbik -Marco Antonio Rubio -John Duddy -Peter Manfredo Jr.
I believe the same thing will happen to David Benavidez when he is forced to fight at 175 permanently. We have already seen the problems Benavidez will have at delicate heavyweight in his debut against 37-year-old Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15th.
Benavidez had a challenging time getting the better of Gvozdyk, and the fight was much more evenly matched than the one-sided scores of the three judges. The fight showed that Benavidez is the next Chavez Jr., and his career will take a downward turn when he can no longer drop down to 168.
“I fought him a few years ago and he’s become a great fighter since then,” Shane Mosley Jr. said. Professional boxing fansspeaking of Canelo Alvarez. “He did it all. He had a legendary and probably one of the best careers in boxing.
“He’s fought everybody. He’s done everything he needs to do. He doesn’t necessarily have to fight a guy like David Benavidez. David Benavidez has to fight him. But obviously, as long as he’s in the game, everybody’s going to point to that name and point to that fight for him because they want to see the best fight the best.”
Canelo is not a delicate heavyweight and that is a problem he would have against Benavidez because the guy does not fit into the 168-pound weight class.
If there was a 10-pound rehydration clause, I don’t think he would have made weight for the second weigh-in. Benavidez could have gone down to 168, but he probably couldn’t have stopped rehydrating to 180 or 190. You don’t expect Canelo to fight someone that huge in a super middleweight fight. No one should.
“I think it’s a great fight. I’d like to see it happen. I don’t think it necessarily has to happen, but I’d like to see it happen,” Mosley Jr. said. “I think David Benavidez might be a little too adolescent, as far as I think he has the advantage of youth,” Mosley Jr. said of his belief that Benavidez would be too fresh for Canelo.
If Canelo fought at delicate heavyweight and rehydrated to 190, the Benavidez fight would be no problem, but that is not the case here. Benavidez should fight at his natural 175 weight class and focus on fighting killers like Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol instead of fighting at 168.
“He’s got a fresher body. They’re both explosive. They both throw good combinations. They’re both veterans, but because of the youth, I think Benavidez might be a little too adolescent and fresh for him,” Shane Jr. said.
Benavidez is fresh at 168, but at 175 he is an average fighter and I think he will have a problem when he is no longer able to maintain weight at 168. I think Benavidez will maintain weight at 168 as long as he can because he knows it is the end of the road when he is forced to fight at 175.
In a clash of forces between two world title contenders, NABO welterweight titleholder Alexis “Lex” Rocha (25-2-0, 16 KO) will put his skills to the test against undefeated knockout and NABF welterweight titleholder Raul “El Cugar “. Curiel (15-0, 13 KO).
The 10-round main event will take place on Saturday, December 14, live from the Toyota Arena in Ontario, California, and will be broadcast worldwide on DAZN.
“‘The best versus the best’ is Golden Boy’s mantra and that’s what fans will see as Rocha and Curiel take on everything that’s on the table,” said President and CEO Oscar De La Hoya. “Rocha is a veteran whose goal is to win the world title, Curiel is an undefeated blue-chip prospect with huge potential. It’s really a 50/50 fight and I’m looking forward to it.”
Tickets for the Rocha vs. match Curiel will go on sale on Friday, October 11 at 10 a.m. PT and will be priced at $100, $75, $50 and $25, excluding applicable service fees. A confined number of Golden Boy VIP Experience tickets will also be available, including exclusive merchandise and fight night upgrades. Standard and VIP tickets are available at Ticketmaster.com, Toyota-arena.com, Goldenboy.com or at the Toyota Arena box office from Monday to Friday from 12:00 to 16:00
“I’ve seen Raul Curiel all these years and he never once mentioned my name,” Alexis Rocha said. “After my last defeat, he suddenly became interested in fighting me. If he thinks I’ve lost a step or somehow had an simple fight, he’s in for a rude awakening. I can’t wait to make a statement and show the world what I’m capable of.”
Santa Ana, California Rep. Alexis “Lex” Rocha comes from a struggling family. The younger brother of Ronny Rios, he was the youngest fighter to win a gold medal at the Junior Olympics at the age of 14 in 2012 and caught the attention of the boxing world by becoming a six-time national champion during his amateur career. Rocha signed with Golden Boy in January 2016 and made his professional debut in March 2016, defeating Jordan Rosario at the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles. Since then, he has amassed an enviable record of powerful knockouts over top contenders and plans to return to world title contention, with his last fight being a victory over undefeated Santiago Dominguez on July 19 last year.
“The fans can expect a war,” said Raul Curiel. “I’m going to prepare well to put on a great show. This will be the most essential fight of my career so far. I know Alexis is a great fighter, a good opponent and will also show up prepared. My focus is on Alexis and if I can beat him, I know it will give me a chance to fight for the world championship.
Former unified lightweight champion George Kambosos approached promoter Eddie Hearn asking for more massive fights.
Kambosos has signed a co-promotional deal with Eddie Hearn, under which the Greek-Australian slugger will continue his association with DiBella Entertainment Inc. and his own company, Ferocious Promotions.
The 21-3 star will move up to the super lightweight division of Matchroom Boxing’s lively division. He aims to become a two-weight world champion in early 2025, and as part of the deal, a title fight is promised as long as he continues to win.
Since his stunning victory over Teofimo Lopez, Kambosos has never shied away from competing against the best. Those three losses on his resume came to Devin Haney [twice] and Vasily Lomachenko, all at home and all for world titles.
The 31-year-old is now set to face compatriot Liam Paro after defending his IBF title against Richardson Hitchins in December in Puerto Rico.
“I am thrilled to be working with Matchroom Boxing. I am excited to have signed a three-way promotional cooperation agreement with my long-time promoter DiBella Entertainment Inc. and Ferocious Promotions,” Kambosos said.
“I made great success and history when I moved up the Matchroom shows by winning my UK elimination fight against Lee Selby. The most noteworthy and unforgettable is my victory against Teofimo at Madison Square Garden in Up-to-date York to become the 135-pound world champion.
“I am officially announcing that I will be moving up to 140 pounds and signing with Matchroom will ensure my continued success and the legacy I want to leave in the sport of boxing.”
Hearn, who adds an experienced campaigner to his stable, added: “I am delighted to welcome George to the team. George’s victory over Teofimo tore up the script and showed that George was the man for the massive time. He has proven to be a huge attraction in Australia and one of the real driving forces behind the rapid growth of boxing Down Under.
“The 140-pound division is full of massive names and massive potential fights. Adding George to the mix only elevates the level, and a possible fight with Liam Paro is a truly appetizing prospect. If Liam manages to win in a great fight against Richardson on December 7th [the fight could be on].
Lou DiBella, who has worked with Kambosos for years, said: “I’m glad I was able to make a deal with my antique buddy Eddie to work with George Kambosos Jr. and Ferocious Promotions.
“Throughout his career, George has been a fighter who has never shied away from a challenge, and now he wants to test himself against top junior welterweights.
Matchroom works with top 140-pounders, including George’s compatriot Liam Paro, and, like DiBella Entertainment, is heavily invested in Australia.
“It’s a natural partnership,” added the Up-to-date Yorker.
One of the hottest topics surrounding Mike Tyson’s return at the age of 58 was the possibility of the boxing legend scoring a knockout of Jake Paul.
WBN has weighed in on this topic several times, questioning the validity of five-second training clips that revealed nothing about Tyson’s abilities at this overdue age. One of the most intriguing observations during the preparations was the opinion of UFC commentator Daniel Cormier.
Speaking on his show “Funky and the Champ,” Cormier reflected on Tyson’s social media videos and offered an informed opinion on the meaning of the clips.
“I understand that [he is in amazing shape at 58]and I understand what he is saying [he feels as though he can compete]– Cormier said. “And I agree that when he hits the pads with Rafael Cordeiro, it looks like there’s still something left in him.
“But then I watch Jake Paul fight Mike Perry. I saw Jake Paul get overwhelmed to the point where he started to feel uncomfortable. It looked like Mike Perry had a chance. But Jake has a reserve tank he can go to and benefit from because he’s 28 years ancient. Then he comes back and finally finishes Mike Perry.
“At the beginning of the fight, Mike Perry gets beaten up and dropped. He looks trained and unmatched. This worries me because what if it looks like a 58-year-old man fighting a 28-year-old man while Mike can’t employ the backup tank to stay and compete with this newborn kid? I think it’s a failure for Jake Paul because if you beat Mike Tyson, everyone will love him.
He added: “What if Mike knocks him out? It’s over. Everything is ready. This would be the backfire of all time. If he gets knocked out, nothing like that has ever happened in the history of the sport.”
Unfortunately for Tyson, this revenge backfired spectacularly, as the former heavyweight champion’s return was the only event that bombed. Tyson had nothing left twenty years after he had nothing left in his tank and no desire to box in his mind.
Paul parlayed this into a money-making scheme that would forever be a success for him and his company, but would be poorly received by the die-hard boxing fraternity.
Cormier’s words resonate, especially after what happened in the ring when Mike Tyson struggled to shift into first gear, warning former fighters thinking about returning after 50.
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