When Badou Jack opted to vacate his WBC super-middleweight belt to campaign at light-heavyweight, it left the WBC belt vacant.
The WBC decreed that the vacant belt would be contested by the American David Benavidez and the Romanian Ronald Gavril.
The result saw Benavidez claim the title by a split decision, with the judges scoring the fight:
? 117 ? 111 (Benavidez)
? 116 ? 111 (Gavril)
and
? 116 ? 111 (Benavidez)
The split decision means that the 29-year-old American is currently the youngest fighter to hold a world title belt and the victory stretched his uneaten run to 19 fights.
However, apart from the obvious disparity in scoring, Benavidez almost came unstuck in the last round when he was floored by a punch from Gavril.
It would appear that the future is a golden one for David Benavidez, although we suspect the Gavril camp will do their best to get a re-match.
Benavidez Claims WBC Super-Middleweight Title
