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

“Rolly, I’d love to keep doing it. Let’s do it. If not, give up the title, do what you have to, but we just want to keep fighting, stay busy and fight all the top guys and have some good fights,” Catterall told Ring Magazine.

The comments come amid uncertainty about Romero’s next move. Reports recently indicated that the WBA champion is expected to return this summer, although the hard task of his first appearance since defeating Ryan Garcia in May 2025 is not expected.

Catterall’s frustration may stem from what happened to Giyasov before the two met in the ring. The WBA ordered Romero and Giyasov to negotiate an October 2025 title fight, but the fight never materialized. After months without securing a title shot, Giyasov moved on and faced Catterall on May 23 at the “Glory in Giza” event at the Giza Pyramids in Egypt.

Catterall scored a 12-round unanimous decision victory in that fight, improving his position in the WBA rankings and putting himself in line for a shot at Romero’s title.

Following the victory, the WBA ordered Romero and Catterall to begin negotiations for a championship fight. Catterall, however, has made it clear he has no intention of spending months on the sidelines waiting for the situation to resolve itself.

The 32-year-old had already revealed that he left the WBO route because he did not want to wait for the mandatory title fight, and he repeatedly emphasized his desire to remain busy against the top fighters of this division.

Catterall’s message to Rolly is clear: defend the title against the mandatory challenger or step aside and let the division move forward.

David Benavidez’s father and head coach has revealed his contingency plan in case an uncontested lithe heavyweight clash with Dmitry Bivol does not materialize.

Benavidez moved up to 200 pounds and dethroned Gilberto Ramirez last month, earning a sixth-round stoppage to become three-division world champion.

However, his plan has always been to return to 175 pounds, where he still holds the WBC title and is looking forward to unified world champion Bivol.

Unfortunately for the “Mexican Monster,” it has been reported that Bivol is getting closer to a rubber match with Artur Beterbiev. He also has a mandatory challenger in Callum Smith to deal with, which means he could drop one of his three belts.

As a result, Jose Benavidez Sr. is now considering a cruiserweight unification fight between his son, the WBO and WBA titleholder, and WBC champion Noel Mikaelian.

I’m talking to MillCity BoxingJose highlighted this as a leading option after saying that the teams of Bivol, Beterbiev and former cruiserweight champion Jai Opetai were not in talks.

“I’m trying to organize these fights. I even told David, ‘These guys don’t answer.’ Let’s fight [Mikaelian]’.

“It’s not a fight that I’m really interested in… I’m just trying to take these fights with anyone [is available].

“If Father Bivol is watching this: stop talking. You say you want to shut up [Benavidez] up, [so] Let’s make it happen.”

Benavidez petitioned the WBC to become the mandatory challenger to Mikaelian and was successful. Therefore, if the WBC champion decides to fight Opetaia this year, as we reported earlier, he will be stripped of his belt.