David Benavidez has apparently not yet decided in which division he will resume his career following his June 15th victory over Oleksandr Gvozdyk which saw him claim the World Boxing Council interim light-heavyweight title while he continues to remain the WBC interim super middleweight champion. As champions are not allowed to hold multiple titles in different weight classes, Benavidez was faced with the relinquishment of one of his titles, but the WBC has now opted to grant Benavidez a two-week extension to make a decision.
Reports from last month suggested David Benavidez (29-0, 24 KO’s) would jump back down to the super middleweight (168 lbs) division, but this appears to have been debunked by the WBC’s own press release which indicates Benavidez has not made a concrete decision on this matter.
The likely hold-up in Benavidez making a choice is the lack of opportunities he could face at 168 lbs where Mexican undisputed champion Canelo Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 KO’s) continues to reign.
As Alvarez holds all of the available world titles, Benavidez’s path towards any sort of competitive achievement would naturally have to go through Alvarez. However, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman publicly refused to order a bout between Benavidez and Alvarez, making Benavidez and his team likely hesitant to move back down to super middleweight if they’re not offered an opportunity to fight Alvarez―with Alvarez himself having recently dismissed the possibility of fighting Benavidez.
Given these circumstances, Benavidez’s WBC interim light-heavyweight (175 lbs) champion status could be leveraged for him to seek glory at 175 lbs instead, but he is not likely to gain an opportunity there either in the near future. Canadian-Russian unified light-heavyweight champion―and holder of the WBC 175 lbs title―Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KO’s) will be attempting to face Russian World Boxing Association (WBA) champion Dmitry Bivol (23-0, 12 KO’s) later this year, and presuming the two have negotiated a rematch clause, Benavidez might not gain the opportunity to fight for a title until next year.
Either division has its set of pros and cons that make it a difficult decision for Benavidez either way, but the WBC’s refusal to order an Alvarez-Benavidez bout might be the leading cause. As both an interim champion and mandatory challenger at 168 lbs, Benavidez should be given a chance to vie for the super middleweight world titles, but favoritism has prevented the WBC from enforcing a mandate, putting the American in a tough spot where his career has clearly stagnated due to not receiving the opportunity to progress as a fighter.
Of less important note is the news of Benavidez’s medical suspension by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) until December 13th. The NSAC—who oversaw the June 15th Las Vegas event in which Benavidez competed in the co-main event—based this decision on the damage that Benavidez accrued against Oleksandr Gvozdyk (20-2, 16 KO’s). Gvozdyk has also been medically suspended but will be cleared to fight following July 31st.
This suspension might therefore also influence Benavidez’s deliberation on which weight class to fight in, with the damage he suffered during his 175 lbs fight hinting at a more difficult division he would need to compete in, which would make his journey to become a world champion again that much more difficult.
