Former Pound for Pound king of boxing Canelo Alvarez is done as a fighter following his loss to light-heavyweight ruler Dmitry Bivol in 2022.
That’s the view of José Benavidez Sr, who is no longer interested in a fight between son David Benavidez and the Mexican superstar.
Benavidez Sr outlined his reasoning as he prefers to focus on Benavidez vs Bivol as the goal after completing his campaign in the 168 pounds division.
He believes Canelo is enjoying his lifestyle outside of the ring too much.
Caleb Plant stands in the way of Benavidez and another shot at the title in the super-middleweight division.
Canelo Alvarez has the belts
With Canelo holding all 168 belts, Benavidez will likely move up in 2024.
“I consider him [Canelo], with all due respect, done as a fighter,” Jose Benavidez Sr told IZQUIERDAZO. “He is worn out.
“First, we saw him with a knee injury, and now he injured his hand. Now, we can see that Canelo is starting to drink. He is beginning to enjoy life.
“But he has all the right to do that because he has been a very disciplined fighter. He has many businesses now and is not focused 100% on boxing.
“Now, he is playing golf, which requires time and dedication. I think Canelo should stay at golf and start a career there.
“I have heard that he is very good at golf. There is no age limit to play that sport”.
Benavidez says Canelo is eyeing lesser tests to get his bag before walking away from the sport for good.
“Canelo has given everything he could against elite opposition,”; Benavidez added. “Now he only has to look for fighters like Ryder or Berlanga.
“He is no longer at the level to challenge elite rivals. But he is in a position to fight enemies that don’t threaten him.
“He used to say that David Benavidez didn’t bring anything to the table for him, that David Benavidez didn’t deserve the fight, that David hasn’t fought anybody.
“But just tell me, with whom did Yildirim fight? Against whom did Ryder fight?”
Canelo vs Benavidez is dead
He then offered a final condemnation of any Canelo vs Benavidez fight.
“I have bad news for everybody: there will not be a fight between David Benavidez and Canelo. Forget about that fight. We have other horizons.
“We have a contract for three fights with [David] Morell, [Jermall] Charlo, and [Demetrius] Andrade. Those are very good fights, names that Canelo Alvarez didn’t want to fight. So, we will fight with them to show who we are.
“David’s body might change next year, and we are ready to go to 175. We can fight Bivol.
“We would get revenge for Canelo. Bivol is a dangerous fighter, and it would be an honor for us to have revenge for Mexico.
“I think Bivol and Beterbiev are willing to fight anybody. They are not looking for easy fighters. But they don’t ask to put clauses and don’t demand that much.
“They are true fighters that want to fight any rival,” Benavidez concluded.