Dmitry Bivol has elected to vacate his WBC title, which has seen David Benavidez upgraded to world champion.
Bivol recently became undisputed champion by beating Artur Beterbiev in an epic rematch in February.
The WBC confirmed they would be ordering the new king to defend his iconic green belt against feared contender Benavidez.
‘The Monster’ has generated a huge reputation since moving up from 168lbs, where he notoriously pursued a clash with Canelo Alvarez for years but to no avail.
And now his pursuit of Bivol has collapsed, with the unified champion now set to instead fight Beterbiev for three of the four title belts.
He informed the WBC that he would vacate his title.
And as a result, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman confirmed that Benavidez would be upgraded to a full world champion.
It would see him have held belts at two weights, having previously held the WBC title at super-middleweight twice between 2017 and 2020.
The champion elect issued a reaction to the news on social media.
It read: “Just got the news that Bivol decided to vacate his title instead of fighting me.
“Now that makes me the WBC world champion at light heavyweight.
“This is not the ideal way for me to become a world champion.
GettyBenavidez has since become the WBC champion[/caption]
“But nevertheless, I am now the WBC light heavyweight champion of the world, and I intend to put on the best fights.”
Benavidez is currently 30-0 in his professional career and now holds another world title.
Despite losing out on a clash against Bivol, the WBC champion still hopes to deliver big nights.
But he could face a wait with a much anticipated third meeting between Beterbiev and Bivol set to take precedent.
Should Bivol win again, it could well open the doors to a new undisputed fight with Benavidez involved.
But he will first need to keep busy and continue his unbeaten streak to pursue the showdown.
The 28-year-old has previously sparred Bivol.
And promoter Oscar De La Hoya believes Benavidez would have the upper hand and has the tools to beat Bivol for the first time.
He said: “I think that’s a hell of a fight. If he’s willing to be great and fight Benavidez, my gosh.
“That would solidify Bivol’s Hall of Fame career for sure. He proved to the world he’s the best at 175lbs.
That’s a tough one. I would go with Benavidez because he’s more active and throws more punches and has better footwork than Beterbiev.
“He’s smarter up there and knows how to think and how to adjust. I would favour Benavidez.”
