David Benavidez says he’s no longer concerned about Canelo Alvarez, as he’s focused on his move up to the light heavyweight division and Saturday’s fight with Oleksandr Gvozdyk on the Tank vs Martin PPV undercard.
“I really don’t care about Canelo,” he said at today’s press conference. “If he didn’t want to get the fight at 168, we’re at 175 now and we’re looking to face the best here.”
Benavidez (28-0, 24 KO) will be vying for the interim WBC title on Saturday against Gvozdyk (20-1, 16 KO), a former titleholder in the division.
“The better the competition gets for me, the better I get myself,” he said. “That’s why I’ve never shied away from no hard fights. I’ve been working with world champions since I was 14 years old, and the best has always come out of me. When the bright lights get turned on, I always show up.”
One of those world champions Benavidez worked with along the way was Gvozdyk himself, and the “Mexican Monster” has no shortage of respect for his next opponent.
“Oleksandr Gvozdyk is a great fighter. I’m prepared for him. We actually sparred when I was 21 years old,” he said. “I know he’s in the best shape of his life. We’ve got two warriors going up against each other. We had a hell of a sparring session — three sparring sessions, to be exact.”
Benavidez vs Gvozdyk is the featured undercard fight on Saturday’s show.