By veteran fight analyst Chris Williams – Colossus Boxing: David Benavidez believes the mega-fight between him and recently beaten Canelo Alvarez is “bigger” than ever for 2026.
‘The Mexican Monster’ says the long-awaited clash against Canelo (63-3-2, 39 KOs) could happen next year, and will generate more fan interest than Alvarez’s first two clashes against Gennadiy ‘GGG’ Golovkin in 2017 and 2018.
Benavidez’s 2026 vision
A fight between Canelo and Benavidez in 2026 would still be massive. It doesn’t matter that Canelo is coming off a loss to Terence Crawford. That fight was boring and mostly involved running away from Crawford. American fans will be excited to see the entertaining Benavidez and Canelo go toe-to-toe and fire power shots.
“Look, the fight with Canelo is more alive than ever. I think in 2026 it could be even bigger than anything we’ve seen—like bigger than Canelo vs. GGG. Fans have been waiting for this Mexican showdown, and with everything that’s changing in boxing right now, it’s going to happen,” David Benavidez told Salvador Rodriguez. ESPN knockout about his belief that a fight between him and Canelo Alvarez could still happen in 2026.
“I’m focused now on building my legacy. Yes, everyone wants to see me and Canelo. This is the fight that could break records,” says Benavidez.
There is an excellent chance that a fight between Alvarez and Benavidez would bring in much bigger numbers than the first two Canelo-GGG fights on HBO PPV, especially if they were shown on Netflix.
What fans really wanted
Canelo, 35, lost to Terence Crawford by a close 12-round unanimous decision two months ago on Sept. 13, 2025, on Netflix in Las Vegas. It was an unusual match that few fans wanted, but Turki Alalshikh wanted to make it happen.
Record breaking potential
Canelo-Crawford drew 41 million viewers worldwide on Netflix, but those numbers likely would have been surpassed had Turki chosen the more deserving Benavidez to fight Alvarez. Benavidez has fought at 168 for years and has never gotten a shot against Canelo.
Crawford didn’t rate a title shot, and he was allowed to jump ahead of top super middleweights Christian Mbilli, Osleys Iglesias and Lester Martinez. It was unfair and turned the fight into a circus level one. With the $150 million Canelo was reportedly paid for the Crawford fight, that was about his asking price to take on Benavidez.
Turki’s missed investment
Turki Alalshikh would have spent his money more wisely if he had invested in making the Canelo-Benavidez fight rather than paying Alvarez a king’s ransom to defend against the 38-year-old Crawford. Why build an older fighter who is about to retire when he could have spent the money to get the 28-year-old Benavidez as the one to dethrone the wilting Canelo? It didn’t make sense.
A veteran fight analyst for Colossus Boxing, beloved by purists, Chris Williams has been analyzing boxing’s power games and false prophets for over a decade.
Last updated on 11/06/2025
