David Morrell Jr. vows to hunt monsters

Less than a month before he fights David “El Monstro” Benavidez for the interim WBC light heavyweight title, David Morrell Jr. is ramping up the rhetoric. The WBA light heavyweight champ might as well declare himself a ghost buster.

Morrell is adamant that he doesn’t fear Benavidez, the undefeated boxer who is such a formidable opponent that even Saul “Canelo” Alvarez is accused of ducking him.

Benavidez, the pride of Phoenix, is known as El Monstro, The Monster. Now Morrell, a native of Cuba, vows to hunt a monster when they meet in the main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Feb. 1. The card will air as a PBC Pay-Per-View event on Prime Video.

“Benavidez is considered one of the most dangerous fighters in boxing,” Morrell said. “So when I beat him, everyone will see what I’m capable of. People call him ‘The Mexican Monster,’ but I’m not scared of monsters.

“I hunt them down! He’s never faced someone like me. And come fight night, he’s going to realize that I’m faster, stronger and smarter than anyone he’s ever stepped in the ring with.”

David Morrell enters undefeated

Benavidez, 28, is 29-0 with 24 knockouts. Morrell, 26, is 11-0 with nine knockouts. 

Just last month, Benavidez made clear that he and Morrell genuinely dislike each other.

“The thing about this is that it’s not fake,” Benavidez said. “We don’t like each other. We have everything we need for a great fight. Nobody is gonna stop me. This is my year and this is the era of David Benavidez.”

Benavidez, the interim WBC light heavyweight champion, has been one of the most dominant fighters of the last decade. Many boxing fans and experts have been pushing for Mexican boxing icon Alvarez to give Benavidez a title fight.

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Unfortunately for Benavidez, Canelo has refused to give him what would surely be the biggest payday of his career. Benavidez is the big name heading into his bout with Morrell, the WBA light heavyweight champ. 

“He’s been running his mouth, calling me out and disrespecting my name,” Morrell said of Benavidez. “That’s fine with me, because words won’t save him when we’re face to face in the ring. All this trash talk just fuels me. He’s going to regret every word when I make him eat his pride punch by punch.”

WBC featherweight world champion Brandon “The Heartbreaker” Figueroa will fight former unified world champ Stephen Fulton Jr. in the co-main event. Figueroa and Fulton are meeting for the first time since they delivered a classic brawl in 2021.

The card also features an all-Mexican lightweight bout between former world champion Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz and Angel Fierro.