With two world titles now in his possession, attention has turned to potential matchups against some of the sport’s biggest names.
Jose Benavidez Sr. says his team has already attempted to open discussions.
“Nobody. Nobody. Nobody. Reached out to Beterbiev’s people too,” said Benavidez Sr. to MillCity Boxing. “We, you know, let me tell you, before we fought Anthony Yarde, right? We’re supposed to fight Bivol. What does Bivol do? Just hand us over the belt. We didn’t want to get it like that.
“So then we reached out to Beterbiev. He didn’t want to take the fight either. That’s why we took Anthony Yarde right away. I thought maybe after the Anthony Yarde, these guys don’t want to fight. Excuses after excuses, but when they’re on social media or whatever, they talk all this like, ‘Let’s do it. Let’s make it happen, bro.’
“It’s just them who’s stopping these fights to be made. We want those fights and we’ve been telling you guys that we want these fights. So Beterbiev, Bivol, let’s make it happen.”
Bivol and Beterbiev remain linked to a potential third fight after splitting their first two meetings. The possibility of a trilogy has continued to loom over the light heavyweight division, while Benavidez has since moved up and established himself at cruiserweight.
Benavidez Sr. also addressed comments made by members of Bivol’s camp, insisting his team has only shown respect while continuing to pursue the fight.
“If the father of Bivol is watching this, stop talking. You say you want to shut this guy up, let’s make it happen. Let’s go, brother,” said Jose Sr. “With all my respect, he’s a great trainer. Bivol’s a great fighter. But let’s stop talking. Let’s make these fights happen.
“We want to fight your son, bro. What’s so bad about that? In all my interviews, if you see David’s interviews, we give this guy his flowers. He’s a great fighter. He’s a dangerous fighter. Why are you getting mad because we’re calling you out? It doesn’t make sense.”
During the interview, Benavidez Sr. also mentioned WBC cruiserweight champion Noel Mikaelian and reiterated that his son is willing to remain active while waiting for opportunities against Bivol or Beterbiev.
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