Benavidez vs. Morrell: A ‘dark beatdown’ in the making?

Trainer Greg Hackett says David Benavidez will use his experience and body shots to defeat David Morrell on February 1. Hackett sees this as a competitive fight through the first five rounds, with Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs) looking good, but Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) will take over the fight and take him down.

Hackett shares the opinion of many people that Benavidez has too much experience as a professional for the 26-year-old Morrell to handle.

Although Morrell has fought many times in the amateur arena against better fighters than Benavidez has faced in the pros, he has not had the experience of fighting longer fights. Only three of Morrell’s matches reached the 12th round in his five-year career.

Benavidez-Morrell will meet in 38 days at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The event will air live on PBC on Prime Video PPV. Morrell will defend his WBA ‘regular’ light heavyweight title in his second fight at 175. Benavidez will have his WBC interim belt on the line.

Benavidez’s aggressive style

“He tried to hit him with his belt. That was crazy,” Greg Hackett told YSM Sports Media about how David Morrell tried to hit David Benavidez with his WBA belt after he shoved him during their media workout.

“They know that the other is a threat and there is a lot at stake. They both have something to prove because they are in a new weight class. Some people like Morrell and some people like Benavidez. You always know this is a high intensity fight because your coaches are in camp.

“Look for a real shooting. Look for Morrell trying all his tricks, and look for Benavidez digging deep and going to that body and really trying to pick him apart. I think it’s too early for Morrell. I’m picking Benavidez all day. “I think he’s the most experienced, baddest, most proven fighter,” Hackett said.

It won’t be easy for Benavidez to target Morrell’s body because he moves and has a wicked left hand, making it risky for the Mexican Monster. He will try to go to the body, but he may regret it later if Morrell attacks him.

The coach foresees a ‘dark beating’

“Morrell will look good in the top five. Maybe the first three before you see him will take a turn, but I say the first five, he (Morrell) will look good. Then Benavidez is going to start to look more and more, scary. It’s going to start getting dark. It’s going to be one of those dark beatdowns,” Hackett said.

Morrell was at his best in the early rounds of his August 3 fight against ‘Hot Rod’ Radivoje Kalajdzic, but seemed to slow down in the second half. However, Morrell still threw with power even in the championship rounds. Kalajdzic held on for a long time, which saved him from taking many hard shots down the stretch.

Benavidez can’t stand it and his defense is his offense. Morrell can do a lot of damage against that type of fighter, and could even knock him out if Benavidez gets careless.