David Benavidez says a fight against unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk is not something he is prepared to pursue right now, despite reported interest from Turki Alalshikh in making the matchup.
Benavidez recently captured the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles with a sixth-round stoppage of Gilberto Ramirez, becoming a three-weight world champion. While some fans immediately began discussing a future move to heavyweight, Benavidez made it clear that he intends to remain at cruiserweight for the foreseeable future.
Asked about the possibility of facing Usyk, Benavidez revealed that Alalshikh had explored the idea through members of his team.
“[Alalshikh] didn’t talk to me directly, [but] he was talking to the people around me and said he wanted to make that fight,” said Benavidez to Luis Parra. “But honestly, I have a lot of respect for Usyk, and I’m not ready for that right now.
“If he came down to cruiserweight, then yeah, we could fight at cruiserweight. But I’m not moving up.”
The comments suggest Benavidez believes he still has work to do before considering a jump to heavyweight, even after an impressive debut at cruiserweight against Ramirez.
Instead, Benavidez appears focused on unifying the cruiserweight division. He successfully petitioned the WBC to install him as mandatory challenger and is reportedly negotiating a three-belt unification fight against WBC champion Noel Mikaelian.
Usyk, meanwhile, has his own decisions to make. The WBC recently ordered him to defend his heavyweight title against interim champion Agit Kabayel. If that fight does not happen, Usyk could be forced to vacate the belt.
Benavidez is staying in his lane at cruiserweight and leaving any talk of a showdown with Usyk for another day.
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Last Updated on 2026/06/22 at 7:51 PM
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