By Norm Frauenheim –
The proof has been unfolding for years. First, David Benavidez had to prove it to himself. Now, he has to prove it to everybody else.
The journey from fat kid to feared fighter, from anonymity to stardom has been a process that almost looks inevitable just days before it undergoes its most significant test yet against Caleb Plant on March 25 in a Showtime pay-per-view bout at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand.
But it hasn’t been easy, much less predictable. Growing-up never is, especially when the lesson plans are subjected to all of the twisted dynamics and drama that rule boxing. Within those ropes, there’s no playground. Just chaos.
At 26, however, Benavidez looks as if he was born for it. Beneath the baby fat, he discovered his identity. A fighter’s instincts were always there, part of his DNA. He’s a natural, comfortable with the craziness and more confident than ever that he can control the violence.
“I’m at the beginning stages of my prime,’’ Benavidez said during a media workout Tuesday in Burien WA, a Seattle suburb and home far from the streets where he grew up in west Phoenix. “After this fight, the sky is the limit.’’
Plant has other ideas, of course. He’s about four years older. At 30, he’s squarely in his prime. He’s also been on boxing’s biggest stage in a stoppage loss to PPV star Canelo Alvarez in November 2021. That’s a place Benavidez has yet to see, yet to experience. Plant says he’s had to learn and adjust in ways that Benavidez has not. He calls it an advantage.
Maybe.
Maybe not.
It’s a key question in a super-middleweight fight that has been brewing for a long time. In the promotional media, it’s been dubbed Bad Blood. The Bad is genuine. The Blood is likely.
“I’ve been training for this fight for three-and-a-half months,’’ said Benavidez, who has vowed to knock out Plant in what he promises will be a painful stoppage to a long-running trash-talk exchange that has been over-the top, even by boxing standards.
Truth is, Benavidez has been training for Plant for longer than mere months. More like years.
Besides all of the noisy trash, Benavidez’ volatile career has been unusual. He’s unbeaten, yet he lost the World Boxing Council title twice, first because of a positive test for cocaine and then a failure to make the 168-pound weight.
If not for that, he might have already experienced what Plant says Benavidez has not. He might have already fought Canelo. He might already be a long-reigning champ.
“If not for issues losing his titles, he’d be on the pound-for-pound list,’’ Plant trainer Stephen “Breadman’’ Edwards told Sean Zittel in a compelling interview for FightHype.
From Terence Crawford to Naoya Inoue, Artur Beterbiev and newcomer Shakur Stevenson, Benavidez’ 26-0 record and knockout rate – 23 KOs – compares favorably to any other on the various pound-for-pound lists.
A place in the pound-for-debate is among the stakes against Plant. So, too, is a possible shot at Canelo, who is coming off wrist surgery against Brit John Ryder in a tune-up on May 6 at home in Jalisco, Mexico. Canelo-Ryder was formally announced Tuesday, the same day Benavidez in Washington and Plant in Vegas did their media workouts.
Coincidence? Probably. Still, the Benavidez-Plant showdown has been designated as a bout that will lead to a so-called mandatory shot at Canelo, the undisputed champion at 168.
“The winner gets Canelo, or so they say,’’ said Benavidez, who has been calling out Canelo for just about as long as he’s been trash-talking Plant.
If anything, Benavidez has taken the edge off his talk about Canelo. He complimented him for agreeing to fight at home, his first in Mexico in more than a decade. A possible date and a big paycheck against Canelo are part of the motivation, both for Benavidez and Plant.
Before opening bell, however, Canelo is almost secondary to the bitter rivalry and all that it means. For both Benavidez and Plant, the bout carries a burden of proof. Edwards called it a test of character in his FightHype interview.
The maturing Benavidez knows that. He’s using it as just one more source of motivation. In saying that Benavidez lacks big-fight experience, Plant left questions that are being asked by fans and media. Benavidez has heard them. Can he deal with adversity? Can he adjust?
Benavidez repeatedly counters with facts and figures that he says the doubters ignore.
“I throw punches in bunches and I land them at a 46-percent rate,’’ he said. “Nobody ever mentions that. I’ve never lost two rounds in a row. Every man I’ve fought, I’ve hurt.
“If you guys don’t think I know what I’m doing, you’re stupid.’’
Next task:
Prove it.
Oscar Valdez Update
15 Rounds has confirmed that former two-time champion Oscar Valdez Jr. expects to be back on a Top Rank card featuring Devin Haney-Vasiliy Lomachenko planned for May 20 at Vegas’ MGM Grand.
An injury suffered in training forced Valdez to withdraw from a bout for a vacant junior-lightweight title against fellow Mexican Emanuel Navarrete at Desert Diamond Arena on Feb. 3 in Glendale AZ, a Phoenix suburb.
Navarrete, a former featherweight champion, went on to win the WBO ‘s 130-pound title in a wild ninth-round stoppage of late stand-in Liam Wilson of Australia.
Valdez, who was at ringside and joined Navarrete in the ring after his controversial stoppage of Wilson, said he hurt his ribs in a freak accident — a fall down some stairs.
After the planned May 20 bout, Valdez and Navarrete are expected to fight later in the year on ESPN, which reported Friday that Valdez is expected to face Adam Lopez in a rematch.
