By Sean Jones: WBC 168-lb mandatory challenger David Benavidez thinks undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez will be stripped of his WBA & WBO titles if he swerves him and chooses instead to move up to 175 to face WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol in a rematch in September.
Benavidez (27-0, 23 KOs) states that he’s been Canelo’s WBC mandatory for the past three fights since 2021, and his title shot is long overdue, which means the World Boxing Council are going to have to order the Mexican superstar Saul to defend against him unless they want to make a mockery out of their organization.
If the WBC allows Canelo to evade his mandatory responsibilities of defending against Benavidez, it will be evident to the fans that the sanctioning body is protecting Alvarez by artificially keeping him as champion.
“I earned it, but if he wants a go at Bivol, then what is going to happen is because I have been mandatory for the past three fights for the WBC belt, he’ll get stripped of that,” David Benavidez said to The DAZN Boxing Show about Canelo Alvarez setting himself up to be stripped of his WBC super middleweight title if he faces WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol in a rematch in September instead of defending against him.
“He [Canelo] might get stripped of the WBA belt too if he doesn’t accept a fight with me, so I think what comes after this is if he doesn’t get in the ring, might be me versus David Morell or me versus [Jermall] Charlo for the WBC and WBA belt,” Benavidez said.
Canelo should vacate all his 168-lb titles
As shot & faded as Canelo has looked in his last two fights, Benavidez’ll likely massacre him, and the light of his star power will dim. It would be wise for Canelo to avoid being stripped by the WBC by choosing to vacate all four of his 168-lb belts and tell the fans that he’s moving up to 175 permanently.
Making that strategic move saves Canelo from the indignity of being beaten by Benavidez and becoming a trial horse for the likes of David Morrell, Jermall Charlo, Demetrius Andrade, and even Caleb Plant.
Fighting at 175 would give Canelo a pass with the fans because he can tell them that he’s campaigning outside of his regular weight class, which would be accurate, but he would be doing it to save himself from being exposed repeatedly by the talented 168-pounders like Benavidez, Morrell, Charlo, Andrade & Plant.