David Benavidez ignores Canelo as he aims for light heavyweight dominance

boxing

by Jared Schwartz

After all, David Benavidez needed to take the next step.

Eventually, Benavidez couldn’t wait any longer.

The two-time WBC super middleweight champion and current interim titleholder wanted to secure a fight for the ultimate prize he had long desired and recently deservedly won, but his opponent was not holding back.

Canelo Alvarez, the current 168-pound champion and one of the faces of boxing of this generation, did not cooperate.

However lucrative and intriguing this matchup may have been, Alvarez showed little interest.

After all, Benavidez’s burgeoning stardom needed to take the next step.

So Benavidez (28-0, 24 KOs) will move up to light heavyweight to face Oleksandr Gvozdyk (20-1, 16 KOs) for the WBC interim 175-pound title in the co-main event of the Gervonta Davis-Frank Martin fight on Saturday night (8 p.m. ET, Amazon Prime PPV) at MGM Grand Garden Arena.

“I can't stay mad forever, I can't get mad,” Benavidez told The Post. “At the end of the day, there's nothing I can do. I've done everything I could. I've fought Caleb Plant, Demetrius Andrade, the best in the division. I've been in main events, I've sold pay-per-views, I've played to sold-out crowds. I can't get mad just because someone doesn't want to fight me.”

“I just turned a negative into a positive. The reason he doesn't want to fight me is because he knows I'm the best. If he wants to lose this fight, he has to lose. He says everyone can make money, but I'm the one who can make him the most money.”

The 27-year-old Benavidez has competed at super middleweight, defeating David Lemieux by TKO to win the interim title and then out-defending the belt against two of the best fighters in the division, Plant and Andrade, by unanimous decision and retirement by his corner, respectively.

But his body was growing bigger and bigger and it was time for him to move up to light heavyweight.

He is still considering and hoping to fight Alvarez if he comes after that.

But for now, Benavidez’s ambitions lie in a new weight class.

“I'm just ready to take over,” said Benavidez, a Phoenix native. “I'm very ambitious. I know I can beat all of these guys. I'm going to pick these guys off one by one and you're going to see me become the 175-pound champion.”

Benavidez’s aggressive, hard-hitting style and power have helped him draw fans and interest.

He calls himself a “true Mexican fighter” and is someone fans can look forward to in fight after fight.

“I feel like at the end of the day, for me to be this type of fighter, I have to be an entertainer as well as a gladiator,” Benavidez said. “If I want to make a lot of money in this sport, I'm going to fight with my heart, not just call everybody out. I'm going to give the fans what they want to see. That's the only way to get to that level. I have to put in a great performance, and I've always done that throughout my career.”

“I'm getting bigger and bigger. Everybody knows my name. Everybody loves my fighting style and I put on good fights.”

Still, Alvarez is like a wound he can't scratch.

He will remain in the back of Benavidez’s mind as a prize that remains out of reach.

But Benavidez believes he knows the current reality, what a return on Saturday truly means.

“As much as possible [Alvarez] “He always says I'm not a risk, I don't contribute anything, but I'm the biggest risk to him,” Benavidez said. “He knows that for a fact. He's scared because he knows I have a hungry mind. I'm not fighting for money, I don't care about money, I don't care about money.

“My main goal is to become boxing champion and win every title, and I've done everything I can to achieve that.”

Another Benavidez fight, another promisingly memorable performance.

They are getting better and better.

“I don't think you guys have seen half of what I'm capable of,” Benavidez said, “which is why I've been seeking these tougher fights. Every time I get a tough fight, I shine. I'm present. And that will continue to be the case. The more good fighters I have in front of me, the better I look.”

“I've known that for a long time.”