Tim Bradley predicts one winner in Usyk vs Benavidez at cruiserweight

Tim Bradley sees one winner in Usyk vs Benavidez at cruiserweight: "He'll beat the breaks off."

Two-weight world champion Tim Bradley has made his prediction for the potential cruiserweight clash between Oleksandr Usyk and David Benavidez.

Bradley does not believe Usyk can win.

Speaking on the Into The Storm podcast, Bradley said Benavidez will convincingly defeat the undefeated 39-year-old.

"The first thing I thought was that Benavidez is going to beat the brakes off of Usyk," Bradley said.

"It might sound crazy."

Bradley explained why he feels so confident.

"However, it doesn't sound crazy to me because I feel like Usyk coming up to heavyweight and gaining 25lbs of muscle, then tearing that back down, at 39 years old, that is going to have an effect on him," Bradley said.

"It is going to have a huge effect on him, man."

Usyk recently announced plans to return to cruiserweight and take on Benavidez.

He relinquished his three heavyweight world titles after a below-par showing against Rico Verhoeven back in May.

Usyk declared that he will have one more 'farewell fight' before retiring from the sport.

Before that, the Ukrainian had been expected to take on Deontay Wilder in his career finale.

Negotiations then collapsed.

Wilder has instead been confirmed for a clash with Jai Opetaia on the Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua card next month.

Team Usyk have now announced that they are seeking a shot at Benavidez in a shock return to the cruiserweight division.

Bradley even believes 'The Mexican Monster' could defeat Usyk inside of the distance.

"You have got one guy coming down and getting weaker and taking from himself, an older guy in Usyk, even how great he is," Bradley said.

"Then, you have the younger guy coming up and he is gaining more and more momentum and gaining more confidence."

"Right out the gate, put a gun to my head, I am going to say Benavidez – maybe even by stoppage."

Usyk is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of his generation.

He became the undisputed cruiserweight champion in 2018 before moving up to heavyweight.

At heavyweight, he defeated Anthony Joshua twice and Tyson Fury once to become the undisputed champion.

But Bradley sees the weight cut as the decisive factor.

Usyk put on approximately 25 pounds of muscle to compete at heavyweight.

Cutting that back down at age 39 is a different challenge.

Bradley believes it will drain Usyk's strength and stamina.

Benavidez, meanwhile, is in his prime at 29 years old.

He currently holds the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles.

Before a fight with Usyk can be properly discussed, Benavidez will return to action on Saturday, December 5.

He will face reigning WBC cruiserweight titleholder Michal Cieslak in a three-belt unification bout.

If Benavidez wins, the Usyk fight becomes a realistic possibility.

The cruiserweight division has seen a resurgence in recent years.

Benavidez and Australia's Jai Opetaia have brought more attention and money to the division than it has traditionally attracted.

Both are undefeated and have crowd-pleasing, all-action styles.

Benavidez is considered the more skilled of the two.

For a fighter that looks to engage so much, he is impressively hard to catch cleanly.

Opetaia is highly mobile and possesses excellent power and workrate, but his defence is leaky.

He is particularly susceptible to right hands, and sustained multiple fractures to his jaw after taking one from Mairis Briedis.

Opetaia has moved in a different direction.

On September 11, he will appear as chief support to Fury vs Joshua against Deontay Wilder at heavyweight.

It seems Opetaia has given up on his oft-stated ambition of becoming the undisputed cruiserweight champion.

That leaves Benavidez as the dominant force in the division.

Usyk's decision to return to cruiserweight has surprised many in the sport.

He had nothing left to prove at heavyweight after becoming undisputed champion.

But his performance against Verhoeven in May raised questions.

Many observers noted that Usyk looked slower and less sharp than in previous fights.

Bradley's prediction reflects a common view in boxing circles.

The general consensus is that a younger, naturally bigger cruiserweight like Benavidez will have too much for an aging Usyk coming down in weight.

Still, Usyk has defied expectations throughout his career.

He moved up from cruiserweight to heavyweight and beat the best fighters in the world.

He did so with exceptional footwork, ring IQ, and punch output.

But Bradley believes the weight cut changes everything.

"It is going to have a huge effect on him, man," Bradley repeated.