David Benavidez says he will never fight opponents who ignore the traditional four sanctioning bodies. WBC light heavyweight champion Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) feels that fighters who follow this practice undermine the sport, making it less popular.
The “Junk Food” Era of Price Wars
A growing number of mercenary-like fighters, popular on social media, have taken advantage of their large followings to arrange non-title fights. They are the equivalent of celebrity matches with no sporting value. It’s junk food type fights that entertain their followers but undermine boxing. These fighters bypass the rankings and try to schedule fights with popular opponents.
A blow to Boxing’s Prestige
‘The Mexican Monster’ Benavidez sees it as “taking away the Super Bowl” when fighters bypass the sanctioning bodies. He told Salvador Rodriguez about ESPN knockout“I will never fight with them.”
What Benavidez says will be music to the ears of the four sanctioning bodies, as the last thing they want is to be devalued, ignored or replaced by a newly created organization.
Fighters who ignore the sanctioning bodies may become more common in the future. Once they gain a large following by fighting for the traditional four alphabet belts, they ignore the belts and focus on putting on only money fights. If there is a belt on the line, it is only used as marketing. They then vacate the title if they win it because that is not what they are looking for.
Shakur Stevenson: The New Prototype
Shakur Stevenson is an example of that. He is targeting a fight against WBO light welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez for January 2026, not for his title. He wants the payday. Shakur has already said he will give the WBO belt to his ‘brother’ Keyshawn Davis after he wins it.
Enter Zuffa Boxing – and the temptation that lies ahead
Benavidez is likely to be in demand by the new Zuffa Boxing League when it goes live in 2026. It will be interesting to see if they can poach Benavidez by offering him a deal he can’t refuse, having him as a draw to entice fans to sign up to watch him in the new league.
Having Benavidez in the new league will initially catch the interest of many fans. What could lead to them jumping quickly is if he fights prospects in total mismatches with zero entertainment value.
WBC light heavyweight champion Benavidez defends against Anthony Yarde (27-3, 24 KOs) in the 12-round headliner at The Ring IV event on November 22, 2025, at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The event will be shown live on DAZN PPV.
Last updated on 11/06/2025
