David Benavidez’s father and trainer Jose Benavidez Sr has given his reaction over the fight with Canelo Alvarez not happening, believing it shows that Canelo appears to be afraid to face his son.
Canelo seems set to announce that his next opponent will be Jaime Munguia, despite fans around the globe clamouring for him to fulfil his mandatory with the WBC and take on Benavidez, after the latter has been forced to wait almost two years for the opportunity.
Speaking to Fight Hype, Benavidez Sr admitted that his son must move on, after links to a move up to the light-heavyweight division.
“I believe Canelo is the best at 168lbs, he’s the king of 168lbs, he’s the face of boxing. I believe that he’s a dangerous fighter and we want to face nothing but the best. We’ve been trying and we have done everything that we could to make that fight.
“First, he said that he would not fight any Mexicans and that he doesn’t want to fight David, so we have got to move on. I am super happy with what we have achieved and how far David has come, I’m super proud of his achievements.
“It makes me very happy to see Canelo and his team to not want to fight David, to be honest with you, because we must be doing something right.”
Jose Benavidez Sr went on further to state that Canelo is no longer the fighter that he once was.
“The most feared fighter, the most exciting fighter, doesn’t want to face David Benavidez. He knows, at the end of the day, you know, I know, everybody knows that Canelo is at the end of his career.
“He is not the same Canelo that used to break arms and knock people out. He knows that David can beat him and he doesn’t want to lose to David.”
Benavidez is now being linked to a clash with Oleksandr Gvozdyk, with the winner expected to challenge the victor of Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol for the undisputed title.