David Morrell says he hopes that the fight between him and David Benavidez can happen soon as they have fought at 175. Morrell (10-0, 9 KOs) faces off on Saturday, August 3, against Radivoje “Hot Rod” Kalajdzic (29-2, 21 KOs) in a twelve-round fight for the vacant WBA World light heavyweight title at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. This fight will be shown live on DAZN PPV as part of this main card.
(Photo credit: Mark Robinson Matchroom Boxing)
Morrell’s wishes for Ngale Kalajdzic
Morrell could face former WBC light heavyweight champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk next, which will allow fans to compare his performance to Benavidez.
He defeated Gvozdyk by a twelve-round unanimous decision on June 15 in a fight that was closer than the scores awarded by the three judges working in the contest.
Benavidez looked winless after being gassed after six rounds and losing the previous six rounds.
A match between Morrell and Benavidez could be a great tie breaker. The winner will fight whoever comes out when 175-lb champions Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol fight.
The two will fight on October 12, and it is possible that they will fight twice. Benavidez is a WBC contender to win Beterbiev’s title in that organization, but he will need an opponent if there is a rematch. That’s where Morrell comes in.
“I feel good. It’s been a long time since I fought at 175. It’s always the same David Morrell. The only difference is the weight,” David Morrell told Boxing News when he was asked how he feels when he faces his champion on Saturday night against Kalajdzic.
Talented Cuban Morrell, 26, has been looking like pure 24k gold lately, beating Sena Agbeko, Yamaguchi Falcão, and Aidos Yerbossynuly. Morrell has been calling out Benavidez and Canelo Alvarez but was unable to get them to fight him.
He couldn’t even get Edgar Berlanga, his WBA sponsor, to show interest in fighting him. The final nail in the coffin was when Morrell couldn’t even find Berlanga who he was forced to fight with. Morrell is set to make his debut against Kalajdzic on Saturday, hoping he doesn’t face the same rejection at 175 as he did at 158.
Benavidez’s tendency
For Morrell to fight Benavidez, he may need the help of the Honorable Turki Alalshikh because the ‘Mexican Monster’ has ignored his cries, choosing to fight old fighters, such as Demetrius Andrade, Caleb Plant, David Lemieux, and Alexis the Wanderer I’m not him.
Without Turki’s help, Benavidez will likely continue to avoid Morrell and fight easily until he gets his payday clash against the Beterbiev-Bivol winner.
“Everyone says it’s better for me. “My team says it’s better, and I feel better,” Morrell said about moving up seven pounds from 168 to 175. I feel strong, happy and excited about the fight.”
Morrell has the best chance to be seen by many fans on Saturday night, fighting Kalajdzic on the undercard of Terence Crawford vs. Israil Madrimov on DAZN PPV. There will be plenty of boxing fans to watch the event, and Morrell may steal the headlines.
“I don’t know him. If they want me to fight him, I will win 100%,” Morrell said in response to talk that he might face Oleksandr Gvozdyk, who was the WBC light heavyweight champion next.
It would be a real statement win if Morrell could knock out Gvozdyk. He was only stopped once in his career by Artur Beterbiev in October 2019.
“I will fight him better than David Benavidez. This guy is not easy, either. Benavidez is strong. “I think so. I want this fight to happen,” said Morrell when asked if he thinks he will be able to fight Benavidez since they are both 175 years old.
Hopefully, the Morrell vs. Benavidez could sooner rather than later be watered down for two or three years.
Benavidez looked awful in his debut at 175. He won’t last long before he’s defeated because it doesn’t look like he’s cut at this stage. He doesn’t hit hard enough, and his combination hits result in him gasping.
“Canelo 100%,” said Morrell when asked who will win the fight between Canelo Alvarez and Edgar Berlanga on September 14.
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