Trainer Jose Benavidez Sr. says WBA ‘regular’ light heavyweight champion David Morrell isn’t as talented as David Benavidez’s recent opponents, Caleb Plant and Demetrius Andrade. That view by Jose Sr. might explain why he picked Morrell out for Benavidez to fight because he thinks he’s a safe pick and not as good as Plant and Andrade.
Jose Sr. thinks Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs) lacks the experience and the style to defeat his son, WBC interim 175-lb champion Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) when they potentially meet in early 2025 in their proposed bout on January 25th.
The Cuban Morrell is known for his technical ability and power. However, Benavidez Sr. says he didn’t see any power from the 26-year-old Morrell in his recent 12-round unanimous decision win over former light heavyweight world title challenger Radivoje Kalajdzic on August 3rd at the BMO Arena in Los Angeles.
Morrell looked powerful in that fight, hurting the 33-year-old Kalajdzic several times with a single left hands to the head, but he couldn’t put him away because he was focusing so much on single shots instead of unloading with a barrage of punches.
That’s how Artur Beterbiev knocked out Kalajdzic in the fifth round on May 4, 2019. Morrell could have knocked him out in the third round, but he failed to follow the Beterbiev blueprint. That’s an area that Morrell will need to improve on because he’s not likely to knock out Benavidez with a single punch like he’d been doing against fighters at 168.
Benavidez is there to be hit, but it’s going to take a flurry of heavy shots from Morrell to do the job. He’s got the power to knock out Benavidez and take his spot as the WBC mandatory to challenge champion Beterbiev. He’s got to change his style for their fight next January.
“What I see is a lack of experience. David [Benavidez] throws a lot of combinations, a lot of punches, and Morrell throws a little bit of punches. Not that many, and I think David is going to try and press him. Pressure, pressure, pressure, and he’s never been pressured like that before,” said Jose Benavidez Sr. to MillCity Boxing about his belief David Morrell lacks the experience to defeat his son, David Benavidez, when they fight.
Benavidez is going to get hit with some big shots by Morrell if he walks him down, and it’s going to be hard for him to take those punches if he puts them together in combination form. That style that Benavidez has worked for him at super middleweight due to his massive cruiserweight-sized frame.
As Lonnie B. says, ‘Benavidez is a cruiserweight that can make weight’ at 175 and 168. He’s not natural for those two divisions. He’s just young enough to still make weight. It’s a good argument for why all four sanctioning bodies should have 10-lb rehydration limits or bring back fight-day weigh-ins.
When there were weigh-ins on the day of the fight, there weren’t a lot of weight bullies in the sport because they couldn’t do it. Nowadays, fighters who use weight manipulation to fight two or three divisions below their natural size are able to have a successful career that they wouldn’t have if they were forced to fight in their natural divisions.
“I think he’s really good when he’s controlling, but when you have somebody that is coming and attacking, throwing uppercuts, body shots and all that. He’s never faced that before,” said Benavidez Sr. about Morrell never having fought somebody that has attacked him the way Benavidez will.
Benavidez has never fought a guy with the kind of devasting power that Morrell possesses. That’s going to be interesting to see how well he handles getting hit by him with his single-power shots. Even if Morrell doesn’t change his style, he’s going to be a handful for Benavidez.
“We faced a lot of people like Morrell. I think Caleb Plant is a better fighter than Morrell. I think ‘Boo Boo’ [Demetrius Andrade] is a better fighter. I think these two fighters are better at this point right now [than Morrell]. That doesn’t mean that doesn’t mean he’s not good. Morrell is getting better and better every time he fights, but I believe these two fighters that I mentioned are more talented and have got more experience,” said Jose Sr.
Plant and Andrade don’t have the chin to defeat Morrell. They wouldn’t be able to stand up to Morrell’s punches without getting knocked out. Benavidez stopped Andrade in the sixth round, and he’s not a big puncher. Journeyman Demond Nicholson dropped Andrade. Plant was dropped twice by fringe contender Trevor McCumby in his last fight on September 14th, and he’s not the puncher Morrell is.
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