Such is the case because Benavidez (32-0, 26 KOs) is a top draw and boxing's only male champion who simultaneously carries crowns across two weight classes. "The Mexican Monster" is the WBC light heavyweight champion and WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion.

But before he can get too ahead of himself, Benavidez's first order of business arrives in less than eight weeks when he faces Michal Cieslak for the vacant WBC cruiserweight title.

"We've got this fight on December 5 in Phoenix, Arizona. It's supposed to be announced soon, and then after that, I want to fight Jai Opetaia on Cinco de Mayo at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas," Benavidez said during the latest episode of “Inside The Ring,” which premiered Thursday on DAZN and The Ring’s YouTube channel.

"We have some great things lined up. This is my last fight on my contract with [promoter] Sampson Lewkowicz, and then next year, we're going after all of the big fights."

In addition to Opetaia, who holds The Ring and Zuffa Boxing belts, Benavidez may consider clashes against a who's who of top names such as Dmitry Bivol, Artur Beterbiev, Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury.

"We've been trying to make that fight with Bivol for a long, long time. It looks like he's not willing to take any of these big fights," Benavidez said. "I don't know what's going on with Bivol or what his plans are, but I have my intentions set on this cruiserweight division. There's a lot of great fights here.

"Beterbiev has reached out to our team, and he's been actively trying to make that fight. So we're going to give him exactly what he wants. I respect Beterbiev. He's like 45 years old. So the fact that he's calling me out, I have a lot of respect for him ... That's a great fight for the public. We're two of the most violent fighters, and I'm all for it."

Benavidez then switched stances and addressed his long-discussed move to heavyweight, and how his size, speed, power, tenacity, and mindset would translate in the sport's glamor division.

"Definitely a division that I got my eyes on, too," he said. "We got two great fights at cruiserweight before we go up there. We have Opetaia, then I think Beterbiev is going to come up to cruiserweight. And then after that, I definitely want to get in a fight with Usyk and maybe Fury, since he mentioned my name. Right now I'm only here to test myself and to try and be great. If we can get a fight in with Usyk and Fury, then that's something I'm willing to do.

"I'm actively looking to make that [Usyk fight] happen, too. I just don't know what's going to happen first. If Opetaia is already looking to fight Deontay Wilder, then I'll take my business elsewhere. If we can't get that Opetaia fight for Cinco de Mayo, then we'll do it with Usyk … It would be a shame [if the Opetaia fight is not made]."

Benavidez, 29, is ranked No. 5 on The Ring's pound-for-pound list and made his cruiserweight debut in May by blasting Gilberto Ramirez inside six rounds.

Benavidez was also asked who among Bivol, Beterbiev and Opetaia would be the most difficult to solve.

"The hardest challenge out of any of those fighters is Bivol," he said. "He's an all-around great fighter. He has great movement. He has great fundamentals, great defense. So, that in my opinion will be the hardest fight out of all of them. But they're all great fights. Those guys have knockout power, great technique, great skills. Each one of them is going to be an extremely hard fight."

Before Benavidez can move on to a menu of mouthwatering matchups, he first must get past Cieslak (28-2, 22 KOs), who won the interim WBC cruiserweight belt in June 2025 with a fourth-round stoppage of faded former light heavyweight titleholder Jean Pascal. Cieslak, a 37-year-old from Poland, hasn't fought since.

"I've been a professional for 13 years, so now it's more about the risk," Benavidez said. "I've had my way with all my other fights. I've won the majority of the rounds. So now it's just more about the chance and the biggest and best challenge for myself. By the time this era is done, I don't want any doubt that this was the David Benavidez era.

"I want to be the reigning, defending, and unified champion, and that's exactly what I'm doing. We got some good opponents lined up. Cruiserweight is definitely a great division for me, and I could definitely see myself becoming the star of the division."

Manouk Akopyan is The Ring’s lead writer. Follow him on X and Instagram: @ManoukAkopyan