David Benavidez blasts Canelo Alvarez for not fighting him
David Benavidez believes Canelo Alvarez is avoiding him, and he's not pleased about it.
'The Mexican Monster' has been out of action since his clash with former champion David Lemieux in May. In that outing, Benavidez dominated and wound up scoring a third-round knockout victory to move to 26-0 in his career.
David Benavidez put a real beating on David Lemieux.
#boxing https://t.co/wzuNC0Mhqj
Along with that, he became the WBC interim super middleweight champion and got one step closer to facing Canelo Alvarez. The current unified super-middleweight titleholder, Alvarez later defeated Gennadiy Golovkin in September.
Following the title defense over 'GGG', the Mexican superstar revealed his plans to take some time off to get hand surgery. Once his hand is healed, Alvarez planned to move back to light-heavyweight, likely for a rematch with Dmitry Bivol.
That sort of talk hasn't sat well with David Benavidez. Given he's been an interim champion for nearly a year and isn't any closer to facing Canelo Alvarez, he voiced his frustrations with the Mexican superstar in an interview with Brian Custer.
On The Last Stand podcast, Benavidez stated:
“It just doesn’t really make any sense. I been winning title eliminators, I just won an interim title. I feel like a lot of people now don’t respect the boxing ranks. If you don’t respect the boxing ranks, what are the boxing ranks for?... I’m the number one guy, I’m the mandatory. I think he’s just talking a lot of shit because he doesn’t want to see me. He knows I’m the biggest threat at 168.”
See his comments below (2:45):
Could David Benavidez fight Canelo Alvarez in 2023?
While David Benavidez is frustrated, there is a clear path to fight Canelo Alvarez this year.
Following his latest victory, 'The Mexican Monster' was ordered to face Caleb Plant. A former champion in his own right, 'Sweet Hands' was also trying to score a fight with Alvarez. The two squared off in 2021, with the Mexican star winning by stoppage.
The WBC has ordered David Benavidez vs. Caleb Plant in a bout to determine the next mandatory challenger for Canelo Alvarez's WBC super-middleweight title.
Benavidez-Plant is targeted for March 2023. https://t.co/X8tlIofN04
Luckily for Plant, if he defeats Benavidez, he will secure his rematch. As of now, the fight between the two hasn't been finalized. However, it's expected to take place in the spring.
Meanwhile, Canelo Alvarez is also working towards a return. The super-middleweight champion has stated that he is looking to make a comeback in May, and has named John Ryder as a possible next opponent.
If both Benavidez and Alvarez make it through their next bouts unscathed, it should set the path for a clash this year.