Benavidez: "I Became the Fighter I Am Today Because of Golovkin"

American WBC light heavyweight champion David Benavidez shared who he credits most for the fighter he has become.

“I only had 15 amateur fights. My amateur career consisted of sparring with world champions.

I give Gennadiy Golovkin all the respect he deserves because he’s the reason why I am the fighter I am today. When I was sparring him, those were real fights. He pushed me to new levels, so I had to find different ways to stay out of the way because he was punching with everything.

He made me learn more and raised my IQ just by being in there with him. Hats off to Golovkin. He’s a great man and a great champion, both inside and outside the ring. I owe him a lot. I learned a lot from him. I became the fighter I am today because of those sparring sessions,” Benavidez stated.

Golovkin last stepped into the ring in 2022, when he lost by decision to Saul Alvarez. Since then, Gennadiy has not announced his retirement but has not returned to the ring.

Later, the Kazakh boxer said he likely would not return to the ring if he became the head of the World Boxing organization. After some time, Golovkin was elected as the organization's new leader.