Last week, claims emerged that David Benavidez had avoided a fight with Artur Beterbiev, which was suggested as one of the reasons for the latter’s passivity.

However, the coach of the “Mexican Monster” rejected this suggestion, claiming that Beterbiev’s team was “lying” and calling for a fight.

Beterbiev, who has 20 knockouts in 22 fights, lost his undisputed featherlight heavyweight world title last February in a rematch with Dmitry Bivol, but the Russian-Canadian has yet to fight since then as talks for a third fight with Bivol continue to drag on.

However, Beterbiev recently told the media that he had agreed to a fight with undefeated boogeyman Benavidez, which would take place in early 2026, but the team of the reigning WBC featherlight heavyweight ruler “changed their mind.”

“Benavidez is the kind of person who talks much more than he says. But it must be admitted that it is conducted very competently. He is already world champion in three weight categories, but his boxing is sullied and of course there are questions about some of his victories.

“He had a fight with Anthony Yard and after that fight I agreed to go out with him. Apparently his team didn’t expect me to agree so quickly, so they immediately changed their mind and chose [Zurdo] Ramirez.

“It was a year ago, it has become the norm in boxing – I will box, I won’t, I will choose my opponents – I like this one, I don’t like that one. I have a different mentality – it is foreign to me.”

Now the trainer of the newly crowned WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion, Benavidez, who prides himself on his willingness to fight any opponent, has responded, and his father/trainer Jose Benavidez Snr refuted the accusation in an interview with Boxing Scene and confirmed that they still wanted the fight with Beterbiev and that it could be done in “five minutes”.

“They lie. We want to fight him. Let’s make this fight happen. Tell us [Beterbiev] manager to contact me and we will arrange this fight within five minutes. Do you have his manager’s number? Let’s go.

“Nothing happened, but we still want to fight him. We are here to fight anyone. If Beterbiev is ready, let’s do it. Who wants to fight? Let’s see. I think everyone is talking about it.”

Benavidez is currently linked to a fight with fellow cruiserweight champion Noel Mikaelian, who has been informed that he must face Benavidez to avoid being stripped of his WBC world title.

Ben Whittaker has shared his thoughts on David Morrell’s defeat to Zak Chelli, comparing the result to one of the biggest shocks imaginable in sport.

“Yes, it was something like England beating Panama or something like that in the World Cup.

“It wasn’t supposed to happen and I think Morrell knew it wasn’t supposed to happen. He probably just showed up thinking it was going to be an uncomplicated job. He really got caught with a stupid shot and that’s boxing for you,” Whittaker said, discussing the defeat in an interview with Ring Magazine.

Morrell entered the May 9 fight as the ponderous favorite, but suffered a 10th-round loss to Chelli in one of the biggest upsets of 2026. Few observers predicted that Chelli would triumph over the highly regarded Cuban challenger.

While Whittaker was critical of Morrell’s approach, he stopped brief of dismissing the Cuban’s future chances. Instead, the British featherlight heavyweight suggested that the result may have been Morrell underestimating his opponent rather than a sign that his career was permanently off course.

“But if they do it again, I don’t think it’ll be the same. I think he’ll come in and do the job for him,” Whittaker said.

Whittaker is currently preparing for his June 27 fight in Brooklyn, Modern York against Peter “Popeye” Dosenovic, which will be his first professional fight in the United States. The undefeated British featherlight heavyweight continued to climb the rankings and has recently been linked to several notable fights in the country, including a potential clash with Anthony Yard.

Robert Segal is a boxing reporter at Boxing News 24 with over a decade of experience covering fight news, previews and analysis. Known for his first-hand reporting and in-ring perspective, he delivers authoritative coverage of champions, challengers and emerging talent from around the world.

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Last update: 2026/06/09 at 2:17

Moses Itaum’s recent opponent, Dillian Whyte, weighed in on the rising star’s chances against former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder.

After 14 professional fights, Itauma has yet to fight longer than 18 minutes, going the distance in two six-round fights and stopping all of his remaining opponents within five rounds, including challengers Whyte and Jermaine Franklin Jr.

While the 21-year-old faced two world heavyweight title challengers, Mariusz Wach and Whyte, the Kent talent did not share the ring with a fighter who has won world accolades. As for the prospect of fighting Wilder, he said he would like to have the “legend”‘s name on his record.

I’m talking to iFL TelevisionWhyte, who Itauma was dispatched within two minutes last Augustpredicted that Itauma would win if given the “Bronze Bomber” assignment, but warned that fighting the hard-hitting American would still be risky

“Yes, [Itauma beats Wilder]but Wilder is a risky fight because Wilder just has this crazy equalizer that he throws.”

While many would love to see this clash, it doesn’t seem high on the British team’s list at the moment. Itauma will return in August, and the main opponent will be Filip Hrgovic.

If he passes this stern test, he is currently the mandatory challenger for the WBO title, meaning he is first in line to the winner of the rematch between champion Daniel Dubois and Fabio Wardley. He is also well-positioned to fight for the WBA Regular belt against the winner of Murat Gassiev vs Tony Yoka or face IBF top contender Frank Sanchez.

As for Wilder, after the American scored points in April, a rematch with Derek Chisora ​​was discussed.