Timothy Bradley rated the boxing IQ of David Benavidez and Dmitry Bivol, taking into account who has the higher ring intelligence ahead of their potential showdown.

Both sides have held preliminary talks about a possible meeting later this year in which they will fight for the undisputed lithe heavyweight crown.

Additionally, Benavidez proposed that they meet at the 190-pound catchweight, which would allow him to defend his WBO and WBA cruiserweight titles.

The 29-year-old won these belts last Saturday, dethroning Gilberto Ramirez after the sixth round and in turn became a three-division world champion in his first appearance at 200 pounds.

Bivol also boasts a victory over Ramirez, which came after an equally dominant points victory over Canelo Alvarez later that year in 2022.

The Russian has since won all four major 175-pound belts, defeating Artur Beterbiev by majority decision in February 2025 before opting to undergo back surgery and seizing the WBC title, allowing Benavidez to move from “interim” to full champion.

After recovering from surgery, the 35-year-old will defend his title against Michael Eifert on May 30.

But regardless of his next appearance, Hall of Famer Bradley went on to say his YouTube channel that he expects Bivol to cause earnest problems for Benavidez.

“Bivol has the perfect style to beat him. I like David Benavidez – I can’t wait for him to fight again – but [fighting] Bivol is a recipe for disaster.

“[Benavidez has] he also has a high boxing IQ. But he is stubborn. Bivol is not stubborn. Bivol is one of those guys who will do the complete opposite [to] what do you think he will do.

“He’ll have a plan A and a plan B. When he fought Ramirez, he came at Ramirez. We thought he was going to box because Ramirez was so damn substantial.

“You probably won’t think Bivol will go to Benavidez – you’ll be surprised.”

Bradley, like Bivol’s boxing mind, emphasizes that his foot speed is a significant factor in a potential clash with Benavidez, who is more known for his hand speed.

World Boxing News has a live scorecard from Manchester as Liam Cameron takes on Bradley Rea in the Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois tab.

Former British title challenger Liam Cameron comes back tonight against Bradley Rea in an essential domestic delicate heavyweight clash on the stacked Manchester card.

Cameron has regained momentum in recent years with a series of thrilling performances and enters the competition looking to stop the rise of one of Britain’s most beloved contenders.

Rea arrives with a 21-2 record and knows a win over Cameron will facilitate him get back on track after his recent loss to Lyndon Arthur.

WBN provides the live scoreboard for the competition below, as well as live results throughout the night.

Cameron vs Rea Scorecard

Liam Cameron vs. Bradley Rea

Announcement

Cameron enters the fight with renewed momentum after rebuilding his career with some impressive performances in recent years.

The experienced Sheffield fighter now faces another challenging task against Bradley Rei, who continues to rebuild from the second defeat of his career.

A win for either fighter will push them closer to greater opportunities at 175 pounds.

Cameron vs Rea results will continue with live coverage available on World Boxing News.

About the Author

Phil Jay is the editor-in-chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a boxing veteran with over 15 years of experience. Read the full biography.

Former world champion Shawn Porter, who previously shared four rounds of sparring with Conor Benn, wondered how the Briton might fare against Ryan Garcia.

“The Destroyer” scored a comfortable 10-round points victory over Regis Prograis, who appeared on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs. Arslanbek Makhmudov last month.

In doing so, he stayed in the win column at the 150-pound catchweight division after gaining revenge on Chris Eubank Jr in a middleweight rematch last November.

As the top-ranked contender for the WBC welterweight title, Benn is set to drop back down to 147 pounds in pursuit of a fight with Ryan Garcia.

The American won the WBC world title in February dethroning Mario Barrios with a one-sided points victory after knocking down his fighter in the first round.

As a result, Garcia secured his first victory since an eighth-round stoppage of Oscar Duarte in 2023, followed by a no-contest against Devin Haney and a unanimous decision defeat against Rolando Romero.

Hoping for more stable form, the 27-year-old aims to defend his title later this year, possibly in the summer, with mandatory challenger Benn turning out to be his likely opponent.

Porter, however, said Benn is credited with his “versatility.” Boxing King’s Media that he felt Garcia’s speed had the potential to lead to a dramatic ending.

“Based on how Ryan Garcia looked in his last fight, it looks like he beat Conor Benn.

“This clash of styles favors Ryan Garcia because of his speed – because of his outside strength – so it will definitely be a tough fight for Conor Benn.

“I would say 60/40 [that] Ryan Garcia will probably win this fight [by] KO. But Conor is very tough. I already knew this about him, but I had to see it with my own eyes during sparring.

“It is much more versatile than that [what] we saw in the first fight with Eubank. He comes back in the rematch with Eubank and we see his versatility, speed, foot movement and things like that.

“That’s what I saw when I sparred him for four straightforward rounds.”

Despite, or perhaps partly because of, their related history of failed drug tests, the Garcia-Benn showdown is likely to attract significant attention.