Benavidez Overcomes Morrell in Light Heavyweight Fight
David Benavidez earned a unanimous decision over David Morrell on February 1, 2025, in a high-level light heavyweight title fight at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The 12-round bout matched two unbeaten champions: Benavidez, defending the interim WBC belt, and Morrell, bringing the WBA light heavyweight title. Benavidez retained his WBC interim title and took Morrell’s WBA belt, while both men had to respond to momentum swings and a dramatic late knockdown.
A competitive fight with a dramatic finish
Benavidez pressed behind combinations and worked to the body, while Morrell used his southpaw stance, timing and counterpunching to make the champion earn every exchange. The pace stayed demanding through the middle rounds. Neither fighter could coast: Benavidez had to keep cutting off the ring, and Morrell looked for clean counters as the challenger pushed forward.
The fight’s defining moment came in the 11th round. Morrell landed a punch that put Benavidez on the canvas for an official knockdown, briefly changing the feel of the contest. Benavidez rose and finished the round, then worked through the final three minutes without letting Morrell take over. Both fighters landed hard shots, and the late knockdown made the final round especially consequential.
When the bell ended the scheduled 12 rounds, the judges returned scores of 115–111, 115–111 and 118–108 for Benavidez. He improved to 30–0 with 24 knockouts, according to the WBC, and added the WBA light heavyweight championship to his interim WBC title. Morrell suffered the first professional loss of his career and left at 11–1 with nine knockouts. The result also made Benavidez the mandatory challenger in the light heavyweight title picture.
What followed for both champions
Benavidez built on the win with a seventh-round stoppage of Anthony Yarde in November 2025, retaining his light heavyweight titles. In May 2026, he moved up to cruiserweight and stopped Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez in the sixth round, winning the WBA and WBO championships and becoming a world champion in a third weight class. That victory made his 2025 meeting with Morrell a key step in a rapid climb across divisions.
Morrell returned in July 2025 and earned a split decision against Imam Khataev in a 10-round contest. His next bout came in May 2026 against Zak Chelli in Manchester. Chelli stopped him in the 10th and final round, an upset that brought Morrell’s record to 12–2. The contrasting paths since Las Vegas underline what the 2025 fight revealed: Morrell could threaten elite opponents, while Benavidez’s pressure, stamina and ability to recover from a knockdown carried him to another title.
Benavidez–Morrell remains a notable light heavyweight contest because it delivered more than a comfortable decision. The late knockdown tested Benavidez, the judges’ cards showed a clear winner despite the danger, and the championship stakes changed hands. It was a fierce 12-round fight that advanced both men’s careers, even as each later moved onto a different path.
Sources: WBC fight report; WBA score analysis; PBC official highlights; PBC Benavidez profile; PBC Morrell profile; The Guardian on Chelli’s upset.
Sources
Tags: MMA
