Shawn Porter sides with interim WBC light heavyweight champion David Benavidez to defeat WBA “regular” champion David Morrell in their fight over 53 days on February 1st at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Like many, Porter feels the experience of former WBC 168-pound champion Benavidez gives him the edge in his 12-round fight against Cuba’s Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs).
Title implications
Benavidez vs. Morrell headlines at PBC Prime Video PPV. The winner of the fight will be in a position to challenge for a world title against the winner of the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol 2 rematch.
“55-45 for Benavidez. What I think Benavidez has over Morrell is experience, that’s the real strength,” Shawn Porter told Fight Hub TV about the David Benavidez-David Morrell showdown on February 1st in Las Vegas.
“Both of those guys are big, but I think Benavidez is more of a natural at 175 pounds. When you’ve had the experience of having stamina in a 12-round fight, it’s nothing new for you. Morrell hadn’t had stamina.
“That fight with Hot Rod, it was a different kind of stamina. That was the stamina of someone who had gotten away from you and couldn’t catch up with him. With Benavidez, he can hit with him. It’s just as fast,” Porter said.
Benavidez can punch Morrell if he chooses to stand, but he probably won’t. Even in his last fight against Radivoje Kalajdzic, he moved a lot and didn’t allow him to land his hard shots. Morrell had the power and youth advantage in that fight, but he wasn’t using it the way he needed to in order to dominate.
“He can box, and that kind of stamina and the mental game with you. It becomes a roller coaster. David Benavidez has been on that ride. Morrell hasn’t. I’m rooting for Benavidez. This one, I could see eight rounds, nine rounds before something like that happened to Morrell,” Porter said when asked if Benavidez could finish Morrell early like he did in his sixth-round knockout of Demetrius Andrade last year on the 25 of November
Benavidez’s experience advantage over the 26-year-old is quite significant, which is understandable considering the Cuban fighter only has 11 fights as a pro.
The best fighters on Benavidez’s resume:
– Oleksandr Gvozdyk
– Plant Caleb
– Demetrius Andrade
– Ronald Gavril
– Anthony Dirrell
– Denis Douglas
By comparison, Morrell only has these three:
– Radivoje Kalajdzic
– Yamaguchi Falcao
– Aidos Yerbossynuly
“Morrell is bigger than anybody. He’s taller than anybody. He’s as fast as anybody. He’s probably stronger than anybody,” Porter said.
Can Morrell be bothered?
Morrell will have to throw more in this fight than he’s used to in order to have any chance of defeating Benavidez, because if he doesn’t, he’ll have to take advantage. It won’t impress the judges if Morrell is outscored 8-1 by Benavidez.
Having more power won’t help Morrell if Benavidez beats him with volume, as his last opponent, Oleksandr Gvozdyk, did on June 15. Gvozdyk had better power and landed bigger punches, but Benavidez outworked him. That was the difference.
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2024-12-10 05:23:19
