Leonard Ellerbe has set the stage for an epic light heavyweight matchup. On February 1st at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, David Benavidez and David Morrell will finally settle the score after years of trash-talking. This fight holds significant weight as it could determine the future of both fighters in the weight class.

Why the Hesitation?

During the kickoff press conference on Tuesday, Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) appeared agitated. He was upset at being questioned about his courage by Morrell (11-0, 9 KOs) and the fans for avoiding this fight for nearly three years after the initial callout. It was believed that Benavidez was afraid to lose and ruin his chances of fighting Canelo Alvarez. He wanted that fight but wasn't willing to make the ultimate sacrifice by facing Morrell.After his last performance against Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15th, Benavidez had no choice but to fight Morrell. His debut at 175 had been disappointing, and he needed this fight to get a shot at the undisputed championship. Facing an older fighter wouldn't have been enough to wash away the sour stain from that performance."I expect to see two young warriors going at it. It's two guys in their prime that are ready to settle the score," said Leonard Ellerbe to K.O. Artist Sports about the February 1st fight. "There's been a lot of back and forth between both of those guys for quite some time, and I think both are excited to get in there and show who's the best. They're right there. Everyone knows that when it comes to the top guys in the weight class, you got two of the top guys that are getting ready to go at it on February 1."

The Back-and-Forth

There hasn't been much back-and-forth between Benavidez and Morrell. Morrell has been calling out Benavidez for two years but has been focused on his chase of Canelo Alvarez. If he had looked beyond that, he would have known that Canelo would never fight him. Benavidez could have saved two years by facing Morrell instead of facing middle-of-the-road opposition.If Morrell beats Benavidez, it will show that many fans misjudged him. His wins over soft opposition in a weight class that didn't suit him will be called into question.

The Tough Challenge

There's no way Benavidez and Morrell can look ahead. This is the toughest fight of their careers on paper. If either of them loses, they may forget about fighting for the undisputed light heavyweight championship against the winner of the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol rematch in Saudi Arabia.For Morrell, 26, it's a big step up. But for Benavidez too, it's a difficult one. His best career win came recently against 37-year-old Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15th, and he didn't look good. That fight showed that he can no longer dominate like he did at 168 against smaller, weaker, and older fighters.