By Norm Frauenheim
David Benavidez has gone upscale and now looks down scale, all in search of belts that add up to undisputed.
On any scale, it’s risky.
How heavy a risk? The best measure is on that unforgiving scale. Benavidez gained 25 pounds to take Zurdo Ramirez’ cruiserweight belts. Now, Benavidez, still the reigning World Boxing Council’s light heavy champion, intends to lose those 25 pounds in a planned pursuit of Dmitrii Bivol’s three 175-pound belts.
That’s 50 pounds within just two fights, a dizzy up and down roller coaster ride on any scale. Charles Barkley says he lost 62 pounds within six months on Ozempic. The former Round Mound of Rebound must be jealous. Maybe, hungry, too
But Benavidez is nothing if not bold. He dramatically enhanced his pound-for-pound clout with a dominant stoppage of Ramirez at cruiser and now looks at Bivol in pursuit of the light-heavy belts that could make him undisputed for the first time.
The Bivol plan was disclosed this week on The PorterWay Podcast when Benavidez confirmed that there had been preliminary talks. Preliminary, of course, could mean just about anything. A simple hello, after all, qualifies as preliminary. However, longtime Bivol promoter Eddie Hearn also told Boxing Scene that he has had discussions with manager Luis DeCubas and PBC
“We like Bivol-Benavidez,’’ Hearn said.’’…I think Bivol-Benavidez is the fight to make.’’
So does Benavidez.
“Bivol is really the only fight I want, that I truly want, ‘’ said the Phoenix born-and-forged fighter, who no longer has any interest in an immediate bout with Zuffa cruiserweight Jai Opetaia. “He has all the belts. I really want those belts. I want those accolades. That’s the only thing I want right now.”
Odds are the belts will be there. Bivol is a 25-to-1 favorite May 30 to beat German challenger Michael Eifert in a fight with a couple of problematic wrinkles. It’s in Ekaterinburg, a Russian city about 1,778 mils from Ukraine. Because of the Russian-Ukrainian war, only two – the International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Association – of Bivol’s belts are at stake. The third — World Boxing Organization’s version — will not be. The WBO withdrew it because of the conflict.
The belts – accolades – are part of a resume planned by Benavidez. He’s trying to test limits few ever have. He’s already achieved one. In stopping Zurdo, he became the first in history to win world titles at 168, 175 and 200 pounds. Yet, he still has not won an undisputed title, unlike the consensus pound-for-pound No. 1 Naoya Inoue, undisputed at two weights – bantam and junior-feather.
His pursuit of a date with Bivol, however, is no sure thing. It hinges on Bivol’s first fight since back surgery, which he underwent after he beat Arturo Betebiev in a rematch February 2025. Initially, it looked as if Bivol and Beterbiev, now 1-and-1, were headed for a trilogy fight.
But there has been no news from Beterbiev or his plans. He’s 41-years old, six years older than Bivol and 12 years older than Benavidez.
Meanwhile, interest in Benavidez has spiked since his May 2nd star-making statement over Zurdo. It put him squarely in the race for 2026 Fighter of the Year.
Even before Zurdo, there had been talk of a fight with Bivol, who — like Zurdo — sparred multiple rounds with Benavidez when he was still at super-middle and just beginning his futile pursuit of a fight with Canelo Alvarez.
The sparring favored Benavidez, according to him and many who witnessed it. But years have come and gone. Benavidez is entering his prime; Bivol is near the end of his.
If there’s a time to fight, it’s now.