Dmitry Bivol responded to David Benavidez talking about their past breakup by making it clear that it was just training.
Benavidez talked about getting the better of WBA light heavyweight champion Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) in sparring, giving him confidence that he will beat him if they fight.
Sparring vs. Fighting
Bivol says that sparring has nothing to do with fighting; he focused on what his coach told him. It has nothing to do with how the fight will be played because he wouldn't do even one thing that his coach would tell him to do.
After Benavidez's impressive performance last Saturday night in his debut at 175 against Oleksandr Gvozdyk, he is in no position to talk about what he will do against Bivol or IBF/WBC/WBO champion Artur Beterbiev. The power that Benavidez had at 168 didn't make it to 175, and he was very mediocre.
Benavidez told the media that he will return to the 168-lb division after his victory over Gvozdyk, and continue to try to get a title shot against Canelo Alvarez. It would be a smart move for Benavidez to stay at super middleweight because he doesn't have the strength or power to compete with the top fighters at 175.
“I respect him as a fighter. He is truly a great warrior. What he says is that he wants to fight me and Beterbiev, it means that he is a great fighter. He's confident, and he wants to win more,” said Dmitry Bivol on Fight Hub TV, reacting to being told that David Benavidez wants to fight him against Artur Beterbiev at 175.
“I remember we had a good relationship. It was good times for me and good times from his side,” said Bivol talking about his breakup with Benavidez years ago.
Benavidez looked so bad in his fight with Gvozdyk that he could lose to half a dozen top contenders. He has to fight top contenders like Willy Hutchinson and Anthony Yarde before taking on the winner of the Bivol vs. Beterbiev.
Bivol Focus on Training Instruction
“It ends. Sparring is a great host. You do other things that the coach told you. You have to do this and that, and you try one round. You wouldn't do it. In another round, you try to do this. In one round you can only do it once, and you feel like you won this sparring because you did what the coach asked.”
Perhaps Benavidez feels he needs to brag about his split with Bivol to give himself a confidence boost if he feels insecure about fighting in the 175-lb division. Benavidez is the type of fighter who likes to pat himself on the back and let the fans know how good he is. So you are.
“In war, it's different. When they fight, they ask you to do something. You won't waste your time if it's not good. He will try to do something else. Sparring is training,” said Bivol.
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