What to Know
- In a move that was a surprise to absolutely no one, the WBC announced that its light heavyweight champion David Benavidez Jr. had formally relinquished his title
- Benavidez Jr. will remain in the cruiserweight division and work toward unifying titles in the division.
- Benavidez Jr. won the WBO and WBA World Cruiserweight titles from Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez in May.
David Benavidez Jr., the current unified WBO/WBA World Cruiserweight champion, has formally decided to leave the light heavyweight division behind.
Benavidez Jr.’s decision to vacate his WBC World Light Heavyweight title came as no real surprise. Benavidez Jr. is also giving up the WBA ‘regular’ light heavyweight belt. Note to the WBA: there is NO need to stage a fight to fill this placeholder belt. Please don’t do it.
Benavidez Jr. Going After Bigger Goals at Cruiserweight
After a knockout win over Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez in May, his best performance to date, it seemed unlikely Benavidez Jr. would want to drop back down in weight for a single light heavyweight belt.
With the majority of the belts still held by Dmitriy Bivol, there was also little incentive to convince Benavidez Jr. to return to light heavyweight.
Benavidez Jr. spent years getting down to 168 pounds to fight as a super middleweight. He made life a little easier for himself by moving up to 175 pounds. But with the tremendous power he displayed in his first cruiserweight fight while losing none of his handspeed or footwork, the decision was an obvious one.
Benavidez Jr. started boxing as a seriously overweight teenager. He says he reached between 250 and 260 pounds between ages 13 and 15 due to a fast food addiction and a lack of discipline in his training. Benavidez Jr. said many years later he didn’t even recognize himself, and knew he had to do something.
Benavidez Jr. recommitted himself to training under the guidance of his father, Jose Benavidez Sr. At the same time, he grew in height from five-foot-five to six-foot-one. He lost 100 pounds in a year’s time. At age 16, Benavidez Jr. weighed 170 pounds, and turned pro in Mexico.
Benavidez Jr. said it was an early and valuable life lesson.
“Dieting was hard, especially when you’re a kid. My father was super strict. I didn’t think I could take the dieting anymore, so I had to decide that if I wanted to be a great fighter, this is what I had to go through. I was still good at boxing. I was just fat.
“When I was close to giving up, I told myself to give it a little more time. That experience of losing the weight made me how I am today, because I was a kid who overcame an obstacle and I use that as an advantage,” said Benavidez.
Now, Benavidez Jr. is eager to snap up the two remaining championship belts at cruiserweight. The first step will be a planned unification fight with WBC World Champion Michael Cieslak. This fight is tentatively planned as a DAZN PPV fight in December. It is expected to take place in the Phoenix area, Benavidez Jr.’s hometown and a strong boxing market featuring Mexican and Mexican-American stars.
Cieslak of Poland (28-2, 22 KOs) was recently elevated from an interim title to the full WBC World title. The former champion Noel Mikaelian ignored a mandatory order to face Benavidez Jr., deciding instead to face lineal cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia on Sept. 12 on a Zuffa Boxing card.
Mikaelian lost the fight by TKO in the ninth round, and lost the belt when the WBC stripped him of the title for choosing to fight Opetaia.
In its announcement, the WBC said the following.
“The World Boxing Council hereby confirms the WBC cruiserweight world championship fight between champion Michal Cieslak and challenger David Benavidez. David Benavidez has notified the WBC that he will continue his career in the cruiserweight division. However, he reserves the right to challenge for the WBC light heavyweight championship.”
Benavidez Jr. vs Opetaia Targeted in 2027
If Benavidez Jr. schedules the fight with Cieslak and wins his third title, he will have a clear path to challenge the lineal champion in Opetaia. This is no surprise. After Opetaia defeated Mikaelian in September, David Benavidez Jr. joined Opetaia in the ring.
Grinning ear to ear, Opetaia replied, “I respect him. You know he’s done a lot for the sport. It’s been awesome. You know, and what better for that to make? How exciting! You know, respectfully, let’s get it on!”
“Let’s do it right here, shake them out next year!” Benavidez said, also showing respect for Opetaia. “This is a great fighter right here, the strong fighter, but they’re only be one monster in this weight division.”
“I’m the person they call when they’re trying to kill the boogeyman. And this man, this is a great fighter, but we’re gonna give the fans a great fight,” promised Benavidez.
Asked how he might beat Benavidez, Opetaia said, “I will find out in time, but he said it now. He’s not taking her back. That’s done.”
“I like this man, said Benavidez. “He looks like he likes war. I’m the exact same way. So we’re going to get the fans a hell of a fight.”
For boxing fans, Cinco de Mayo 2027 can’t come soon enough. David Benavidez Jr. is making the cruiserweight division great again.
And you can count on Benavidez Jr. moving up to heavyweight to challenge himself in the glamour division of boxing once he finishes his business at 200 pounds.
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist with more than four dozen awards for both written and video coverage from the Boxing Writers Association of America, Society of Professional Journalists, and San Diego Press Club, where she is the past president. She is the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the BWAA. She is the Boxing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.
