David Benavidez vs Oleksandr Gvozdyk approved for WBC Interim light-heavyweight title
Benavidez vs Gvozdyk approved by the WBC
The World Boxing Council has approved the fight between American David Benavidez (28-0, 24KO) and Ukrainian Oleksandr Gvozdyk (20-1, 16KO) for the WBC Interim light-heavyweight title.
Despite the announcement of this tasty fight, boxing fans may feel let down by the sport for once again not providing the fight they all really wanted.
Benavidez vs Canelo was at the top of everyone's wish list, but the Mexican is still without an opponent for his traditional annual fight on the Cinco de Mayo weekend.
27-year-old "Mexican Monster" Benavidez comes into this fight after successfully defending his WBC Interim super-middleweight title by stopping previously undefeated Demetrius Andrade in a stellar performance last November.
Not only is he a two-time world champion, he also holds the record as the youngest super-middleweight titleholder in history.
Trained by his father, Jose Sr., he first started boxing at the age of three and left the amateurs with a 15-0 record. His older brother, José Benavidez Jr., is also a professional boxer who held the WBA welterweight title.
Gvozdyk shares a lot of similarities with his forthcoming foe. He started boxing young, at the age of 10, and is also a former world champion. However, he had a very different amateur career, where he accumulated an astonishing 225–30 record, culminating in winning an Olympic bronze medal at the London 2012 Games.
He has one single loss in the pros, at the hands of fearsome Russian Artur Beterbiev. It was a competitive fight until Gvozdyk began to tire under the relentless pressure of AB, who only really took control of the contest in the ninth and ended matters in the 10th. At that point, two judges had the fight scored 87–83 and 86-85 for Gvozdyk.
Despite early feelings of disappointment over the failed Canelo matchup, David Benavidez vs Oleksandr Gvozdyk has the makings to be a modern classic, with both boxers very closely paired.
More information, such as date and location, will be released in the coming days.
