David Benavidez’s promoter says time will tell if a move up to 175lbs is a “mistake” or not for the fighter.
Benavidez has long wanted a clash with Canelo Alvarez, but with no fight on the horizon between the two, he elected to move up to light heavyweight having previously operated at 168lbs.
He fights on Saturday, live on Amazon PPV in the US and in the UK , as he takes on Oleksandr Gvozdyk for the interim WBC strap, which could position him for the winner of Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol, with the undisputed clash set for this October.
His promoter, Sampson Lewkowicz, noted that the 27-year-old American has moved up the weight and is already comfortably expected to make the cut before the weigh-in on Friday.
That suggests that he will not fill out excessively ahead of Saturday’s fight. While that indicates he could thus return to 168lbs without too much of a struggle, it may mean he lacks the size to compete this weekend.
“The WBC stipulates 30-day, 15-day, seven-day and three-day weigh-ins … he’s been very close to what he’d be for a fight at 168,” Lewkowicz told BoxingScene. “It’s the same amount of weight. It’s not an issue. It shows he can do 168 easy.”
He continued: “I don’t know (if Benavidez being so slim) is a mistake or not. We’ll find out. But it’s an issue.
“It shows (168) is natural to him. He’s training in Miami … with the sweating and the warmth, that (weight loss) is what happened. I’m not worried about it, because he’s a professional and knows what he’s doing.
“But it shows he’s able to go right back to 168.”
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