David Benavidez is risking his shot at Oleksandr Usyk by messing around with Jai Opetaia or Artur Beterbiev beforehand. Jumping straight up to heavyweight makes total sense, especially since he already sounds open to flipping the script.
Talking about skipping straight to Usyk sounds a whole lot less like fearless ambition and a whole lot more like self-preservation.
Benavidez knows that the road running through Jai Opetaia and Artur Beterbiev is not a tune-up run. It is an absolute danger. If he actually believed he could steamroll both men, he would happily take their scalps, build an undeniable mountain of momentum, and walk into a showdown with Usyk as a massive multi-division attraction.
Bypassing them exposes the reality: he knows the risk of getting derailed before cashing that mega check is sky-high.
“If they want me to go up … I don’t give a f***,” Benavidez stated in the interview. “I want to fight. I want to fight the best people. And if I got to go up there and fight for the lineal belt with no belts, I’ll do that … I just want to fight the best in the world. I want my respect, and I’m going to get it one way or another,” said Benavidez to Fight Hub TV about moving up to heavyweight to face Usyk.
That sounds like someone ready to sign for Usyk the moment pen meets paper. He never locked himself into clearing out Opetaia or Beterbiev before taking that leap.
If he takes an L against either one, the Usyk lottery ticket instantly turns to dust. Usyk is not going to look twice at a defeated Benavidez trying to pick up the pieces, not when he can command massive money elsewhere.
Opetaia has the exact southpaw movement, discipline, and sharp counterpunching to turn Benavidez into a frustrated stalker swinging at fresh air while eating clean leather all night. Beterbiev brings brutal inside violence and technical craft that makes trading in the pocket pure trouble.
Both matchups carry a high probability of stripping Benavidez of his spotless record and shredding his market value.
Benavidez already wasted years chasing Canelo Alvarez, only to come away empty-handed. Now that he is finally free from that waste of time, he ought to recognize the danger of waiting around for the stars to align.
Usyk is clearly the legacy crown he wants.
“Usyk has more accolades than Canelo, in my opinion,” Benavidez noted. “Once I beat him, there’s no denying me my spot in the history of boxing.”
Admitting he would train “like I’m scared for my life” shows he respects the mountain in front of him. Taking Usyk immediately carries risk, but it locks down the biggest prize while Benavidez’s zero remains intact.
