In a surprise turn of events, WBC interim light heavyweight champion David Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) announced on Instagram that he will be facing undefeated Cuban sensation David Morrell Jr. (11-0, 9 KOs) next instead of Jesse Hart (31-3, 25 KOs) who he previously mentioned as an opponent a few weeks ago.
Per Benavidez’s verified Instagram account, he said, “There was a lot of names on the table, but I wanted to give my fans the best fight possible. I reached out to David Morrell and his team to make this happen, and we got the contract done. This fight really gonna be a banger!!! 2 of the best in the division and 2 titles on the line, LFG!!!!!
Date & Location to be announced shortly.”
According to sources close to the situation, the fighters agreed to fight, but the date and location have not yet been finalized. The same sources said the target date would be “early 2025”. Regardless of when it happens, it will be a can’t miss matchup as these two fighters have exchanged plenty of pleasantries in the past as both claim they were being avoided. The matchup will be for the WBA & WBC interim light heavyweight titles, which should place the winner as the next opponent for the fighter who leaves Saudi Arabia on Saturday night as the undisputed champion.
Benavidez was last seen in the ring against Oleksandr Gvozdyk (20-2, 16 KOs) in June as he scored a unanimous decision victory in his light heavyweight debut. There has been speculation that Benavidez‘s ribs were injured that night, but nothing official has been said by his team about it.
Morrell fought on the card hosted by Riyadh Season, who was making their US debut in August. Morrell, making his light heavyweight debut, scored a unanimous decision over Radivoje Kalajdzic (29-3, 21 KOs) in a performance that wasn’t his best, but he was still able to get the job done. Morrell has long campaigned for the Benavidez fight and will now get it.
It’s a great matchup, and during a time of the year when boxing is still waiting to get going, we now have a premier matchup to kick off 2025.
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