Benavidez Eyes Beterbiev At Cruiserweight

David Benavidez says his light heavyweight days are over and believes his biggest fights are at 200 pounds.

Benavidez became a three-division champion in May, stopping Gilberto Ramirez in round six to win the WBO and WBA cruiserweight titles. Earlier this week he vacated his WBC light heavyweight belt, which opens the door for the winner of Joshua Buatsi vs. Willy Hutchinson to be crowned a full champion on November 7.

Next up is expected to be WBC cruiserweight champion Michal Cieslak on December 5, followed by a Cinco de Mayo weekend fight with Jai Opetaia in 2027. A move to heavyweight could come after that, but Benavidez wants Artur Beterbiev first.

“The heavyweight division is definitely a division I’ve got my eyes on. [But] we’ve got two great fights at cruiserweight before we get up there. We’ve got Jai Opetaia, then I think Beterbiev is going to come up to cruiserweight,” Benavidez