Basking in his unified cruiserweight title victory on Saturday night, David Benavidez advised reporters not to mention the fantasy of following his successful 25-pound jump in weight with another big move to heavyweight.
Less than 48 hours later, however, the suggestion of accepting that lucrative option has been floated to three-division titleholder Benavidez, 32-0 (26 KOs), by the sport’s top power broker, Saudi Arabia’s Turki Alalshikh.
The Alalshikh-owned Ring Magazine reported on Monday that he wants to stage a 2027 bout between Phoenix’s Benavidez, 29, and three-belt heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk, 24-0 (15 KOs).
Usyk, 39, is preparing for a May 23 fight at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt versus kickboxer Rico Verhoeven. That follows a two-time undisputed title run in which Usyk has twice vanquished Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Daniel Dubois.
“I woke up and I’m seeing that everywhere. They’re making a big deal of it,” Benavidez’s trainer-father, Jose Benavidez Snr, told BoxingScene Monday. “Anything’s possible. I’ll sit with David and we’ll discuss it.”
The elder Benavidez said given the uncertain landscape of who to fight next around an ideal mid-September date – with three-belt light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol and unbeaten Zuffa cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia considered the favorite choices – the idea of meeting Usyk following his 40th birthday in January 2027 intrigues.
“Usyk is really good, but with the age and him fighting older fighters, that’s a fight we can make,” Benavidez Snr said. “David thought it would be down the road a way, but now that they mention it, that would be crazy and out of this world.”
The venue and proposed date of the fight have yet to be mentioned, but Benavidez Snr said his Premier Boxing Champions-promoted son had a positive experience fighting for Alalshikh and defeating light heavyweight Anthony Yarde last November in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Former undisputed cruiserweight champion Usyk hasn’t been heavier than 227¼lbs in any of his heavyweight fights, and Benavidez expected to weigh about 210lbs after rehydrating Saturday. He proceeded to be the first opponent to ever stop WBA/WBO cruiserweight titleholder Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez in the sixth round at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
“We were looking for [a heavyweight fight as many as five years] in the future, but I guess it could come before?” Benavidez Snr said. “[Usyk’s] one of our favorite fighters, it would be an honor.
“I knew by winning Saturday there would be so many new doors open to us. Now it’s a matter of choosing one.”
