David Benavidez turned 28 right this moment, December seventeenth, as he prepares to combat WBA common mild heavyweight champion David Morrell on February 1st in Las Vegas. The ‘Mexican Monster’ Benavidez received the WBC interim mild heavyweight title in his final combat in a lackluster efficiency in opposition to Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June fifteenth.
Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) needed to battle onerous to win a 12-round unanimous choice in opposition to Gvozdyk. In an interview, Benavidez says he went into the combat with each palms injured and a latest reduce. He feels these accidents prevented him from being 100%. That is what I used to be afraid of. Benavidez is beginning to break down from an extended, lengthy profession within the sport.
Benavidez’s Harm Issues
He’s 28, however he may as nicely be 38. Benavidez has been knowledgeable for so long as undisputed mild heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev, and he’s additionally struggling repeated accidents. Being within the recreation for 10+ years does it to a fighter. It’s very tough to proceed preventing on the high stage as soon as a man has been within the sport that lengthy.
The accidents Benavidez is starting to maintain could possibly be an indication that his physique is breaking down from an extended profession. Though he’s nonetheless younger at 28, he’s been within the sport for 11 years. Many fighters are bodily shot by the point they’re of their tenth 12 months within the professional recreation. It has nothing to do with chronological age.
The bodily breakdown is from put on & tear, and Benavidez may present early indicators. First, the palms go, adopted by reflexes and punch resistance. He hasn’t fought any punchers throughout his profession apart from 37-year-old Gvozdyk, who was lighting him up of their conflict on the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. Benavidez obtained via that combat with out getting knocked out, however he obtained some terrible punishment from Gvozdyk.
David could possibly be kidding himself as a result of he was by no means a puncher, even at 168. His knockouts got here from his quantity punching in opposition to older, lesser fighters., and he’s by no means proven any trace of energy throughout his 11-year profession.
Benavidez seemed the identical as all the time, power-wise, and the one distinction was that his photographs had no impact at 175, as that they had in opposition to the smaller veterans he’d been preventing at 168. He was big for that division and was matched in opposition to principally older figures lately by his promoters. Shifting as much as 175, Benavidez’s energy wasn’t the identical and clearly had nothing to do with each of his palms being injured.
Indicators of Decline
“I had a whole lot of accidents going into this combat. Seven weeks going into the combat, I tore a ligament or a tendon [in right hand]. It was a fairly extreme damage,” stated David Benavidez to Tobin, speaking about why he fought so poorly in his debut at 175 in opposition to Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June fifteenth in Las Vegas.
“They stated I wanted seven weeks to get better from that. ‘Properly, I don’t obtained that. I’m going to go forward and use my left hand, and hopefully, by the point the combat [Gvozdyk] will get there, this one [right hand] goes to be recovered. So, I’m throwing jabs and there’s 5 weeks earlier than the combat, and I hit the man [sparring partner] on high of the top.
“I really fractured that and couldn’t use that [left hand] both. That damage quite a bit,” stated Benavidez, mentioning that each of his palms had been injured whereas he was going into his combat in opposition to 37-year-old former WBC mild heavyweight champion Gvozdyk. “So, I’m like, ‘I’m not going to cancel the combat anyhow. So, I’m simply going to present it a while to heal up.’”
The Gvozdyk combat was going to be a life & loss of life one for Benavidez no matter his accidents, as this man was ranges above the blokes that he’d been feasting on at 168. Who did Benavidez beat at 168 that you would be able to name a great fighter? These three are the very best that Benavidez fought throughout his profession as an excellent middleweight: Caleb Plant, Demetrius Andrade, and Anthony Dirrell. We’re not speaking about A-level guys. These are B-level fighters, and two of them had been very previous.
“Two weeks later, I’m sparring in there once more, and within the twelfth spherical, I get reduce on my [left] eye,” Benaviez continued about his damage drawback. “I get 13 stitches. I used to be torn up. I didn’t know what to do. I’ve this damage [left hand] and this damage [right hand], and I’ve a reduce. As a result of the followers imply a lot to me, and it is a large deal to the individuals of boxing and the individuals of PBC.
“I’m like, ‘You recognize what? I’m simply going to go in there and pray that my palms are wholesome. My stamina is there. I’m simply going to go on with the combat.’ I child you not. I’m within the dressing room, and I’m hitting the mitts. I really feel my [left] hand swelling up. I really feel this [right hand] damage. I’m already form of nervous.”
Morrell Will Capitalize
As I stated, Benavidez’s physique is breaking down from an extended profession within the sport, and he doubtless doesn’t have a lot time left. It’s possible that he’ll endure accidents throughout his coaching camp for the Morrell combat. If he doesn’t postpone the combat, he’ll go into the competition in opposition to the Cuban Morrell with accidents to at least one or each palms. That’s not the kind of man that Benavidez can afford to be preventing with accidents as a result of he’ll get chopped aside by this expertise.
“I went in there, and I did an awesome job. I received eight or 9 rounds in opposition to a veteran [Gvozdyk]. He was a silver medal within the Olympics, and he was a unified champion at mild heavyweight [correction: Gvozdyk is a former WBC 175-lb champion, NOT a unified former champ],” stated Benavidez.
Opposite to what Benafvidez says, he did NOT do a “nice job” in his combat in opposition to Gvozdyk. That match seemed 100% prefer it ought to have been scored a 12-round draw. Whereas the judges did Benavidez a favor by giving him the win, he can’t depend on being gifted a call in opposition to Morrell as a result of he’ll take away the judges from the equation along with his energy punching.
