Roy Jones Jr. think David Benavidez should skip Jai Opetaia and go straight for Oleksandr Usyk. It was the strongest takeaway from Jones’ response to Benavidez stopping Gilberto Ramirez and winning the WBO and WBA cruiserweight titles.
Jones said Benavidez is in a rare position where one fight can change boxing history and his financial future at the same time.
“I think him and Usyk will be a really good fight right now. I really do,” Jones said The Hall of Game Podcast.
Roy went even further when Andre Ward brought up Jai Opetaia as the logical next fight at cruiserweight. Jones argued that it would be a mistake to fight Opetaia first because a loss could destroy the bigger Usyk opportunity.
“Go get Usyk while the iron’s hot,” Jones said. “If you lose to Opetaia, Usyk fight is over.”
Jones believes Benavidez has already grown physically too big for the lower divisions. He said Benavidez looked like “a guy who cut down to make 200” at the cruiserweight limit and even floated the possibility that he would eventually become heavyweight champion.
The interesting part is that Jones doesn’t treat the Usyk idea like fantasy matchups. He described it as the smartest business move available right now, especially with Benavidez’s profile growing after the Ramirez stoppage and Canelo Alvarez still refusing to fight him.
Ward sounded more cautious. He admitted the Usyk fight would be “a big risk for both fighters” because Usyk is not only a naturally bigger heavyweight, but also one of the sport’s most skilled operators.
Still, Jones kept coming back to the same point: Benavidez may never have a better time to chase the biggest fight possible.
“The Usyk fight is one of the biggest fights of this decade right now,” Jones said.
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Last updated on 2026/05/06 at 17:27
