Boxing

Turki Alalshikh Pours Cold Water On Dmitry Bivol vs David Benavidez Fight

Boxing star David Benavidez appears to be getting left on the sidelines once again.
Grant Young|
Feb 1, 2024; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Turki Al-Sheikh, advisor at the Royal Court under the rank of Minister and the current chairman of general authority for entertainment, walks on the field before the game between Al-Nassr and Inter Miami CF. Mandatory Credit: Victor Fraile-Imagn Images
Feb 1, 2024; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Turki Al-Sheikh, advisor at the Royal Court under the rank of Minister and the current chairman of general authority for entertainment, walks on the field before the game between Al-Nassr and Inter Miami CF. Mandatory Credit: Victor Fraile-Imagn Images | Victor Fraile-Imagn Images

There's no dispute that Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia's general entertainment authority, is not only the most powerful man in boxing but in all of combat sports. The sheer number of fantastic fights that he has put together over the past couple of years (which would not have been made without him) proves this.

This means that Alalshikh has the power to both produce and dismiss potential fights as he sees fit. And as recently as last month, he seemed keen on making a fight between David Benavidez and the winner of the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol match.

However, Alalshikh's sentiment has since shifted as a March 7 release from his Ring Magazine quoted him saying, “I am no longer interested in Bivol-Benavidez and I will not bid on it. I think Bivol knows who has delivered for him and who hasn’t. My advice to Bivol: don’t be late because every day something changes.”

This change in decision is surely owed to Alalshikh's desire to put on a trilogy fight between Bivol and Beterbiev after Bivol emerged victorious in the rematch last month, in what was another fight for the ages.

While boxing fans won't complain about getting to see these two titans settle their in-ring rivalry once and for all, these same fans have got to feel for Benavidez, who was never able to secure a big fight with Canelo Alvarez despite years of trying and is now being left on the sidelines once again.

However, once this trilogy is finalized, Benavidez should become next in line to get his big money fight against the victor.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young is a Staff Writer for On SI’s Boxing, New York Mets, Indiana Fever, and Women’s Fastbreak sites. Before joining SI in 2024, he wrote for various boxing and sports verticals such as FanBuzz and NY Fights. Young has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and a master’s degree in creative writing with an emphasis on sports nonfiction from the University of San Francisco, where he played five seasons of Division 1 baseball. He fought Muay Thai professionally in Thailand in 2023, loves a good essay, and is driven crazy trying to handle a pitpull puppy named Aura. Young lives in San Diego and was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.