An angry, needy, bitter-sounding WBC interim super middleweight champion David Benavidez unloaded on Canelo Alvarez for holding his four 168-lb belts “hostage,” not allowing him to fight for them in May 2024. He feels that Canelo should focus on “celebrity matches.”
If Canelo did release his titles, it’s pretty obvious that Benavidez would still be standing on top of his soapbox, campaigning as usual for a fight against him, and bashing him to no end for not giving him an unearned payday.
David Benavidez’s weak resume
Benavidez is not a star, can’t sell PPVs, and has only fought two semi-notable fighters during his long career, a washed 35-year-old Demetrius Andrade and Caleb Plant.
If Benavidez were an old school fighter, like a Jack Dempsey type, he would have run that gauntlet already, using his cruiserweight-sized from to fight all the killers from the 168 to the 200-lb divisions.
Unfortunately, Benavidez is more of a play-it-safe type guy, who’d rather take on old timers like David Lemieux, Andrade, and Roamer Alexis Angulo.
Canelo has no reason to fight Benavidez because he’s not a PPV draw, and he’s failed to take chances with his career by fighting killers like David Morrell & Dmitry Bivol.
You can argue this is more about Benavidez wanting the payday for the Canelo fight and needing his scalp to increase his popularity to make him a PPV attraction.
Benavidez vs. Andrade rumored PPV numbers = A horrible 60K
Benavidez’s lack of fame was front & center last Saturday night for his headliner against 35-year-old Demetrius Andrade on Showtime PPV, an event that is rumored to have brought in a dreadfully poor 60K PPV buys.
Those low numbers suggest that Benavidez lacks the charisma to become a star, and part of that could be that he’s repetitive & boring in his interviews. He sounds very old-fashioned, and the younger fans fail to connect with that type of fighter.
You can make a strong argument that even if Canelo did vacate his IBF, WBA, WBC & WBO 168-lb titles, that wouldn’t stop Benavidez from hounding him for a fight and criticizing him during interviews for not giving him what he wants.
Obviously, the “Mexican Monster’ Benavidez’s bossy, high-pressure campaign for Canelo to fight him wouldn’t end if he were to vacate the belts because that’s not what this is about.
If those numbers are true, it’s even more imperative that Benavidez fight Canelo, regardless of whether he’s beltless or still holding the undisputed super middleweight championship.
That tells you that Benavidez NEEDS a win over Canelo for these purposes:
1. Get the big life-changing payday
2. To become a PPV attraction
The two-time WBC super middleweight champion Benavidez would have gotten the fight against Canelo ages ago if he’d not been stripped twice.
Benavidez (28-0, 24 KOs) is impatient, arguably spoiled, and accustomed to getting his way when he wants to fight someone.
The fact that Benavidez can’t get his way by being allowed to fight for Canelo’s four belts has him seemingly having a fit and letting fans & media hear about it.
Benavidez wants the Canelo fight given to him on a silver platter
Alvarez has been fighting top contenders all along, just not Benavidez, who hasn’t helped himself by fighting mostly weaker opposition during his ten-year professional career and not taking on the dangerous fighters that would allow him to put real pressure on the superstar.
It wouldn’t be a problem for Benavidez if he’d fought these guys to position himself for a title shot: Dmitry Bivol, David Morrell, Artur Beterbiev, Diego Pacheco, and Jermall Charlo.
“Why does he have all the belts? He should just do celebrity boxing matches,” said David Benavidez to ProBox TV about undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.
“Why is he still holding the belts hostage and not giving the #1 contenders the opportunities they deserve? You owe it to the people; let’s give the people what they want to see.
