Opinion: David Benavidez will be much too much for Caleb Plant
Caleb Plant has a big mountain to climb.
Everyone agrees that the former 168-pound titleholder is a good, athletic boxer with respectable punching power and experience. He can be competitive against anyone, as he demonstrated in 10-plus rounds against Canelo Alvarez in 2021.
The problem is that he lost the fight against Alvarez, by an 11th-round knockout. And he could be in for a similar fate against David Benavidez in their pay-per-view fight Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Plant’s ability to stick and move might give the less-athletic Benavidez trouble early in the fight, as it did against Alvarez. The Tennessean could lead on the cards after the first five or six rounds.
The question is whether he can withstand Benavidez’s relentless pressure for 12 rounds. The answer is no.
Alvarez gradually, methodically cut off the ring against Plant, broke him down and stopped him with a vicious right uppercut in the penultimate round to unify all four major super middleweight titles.
Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs) isn’t as skillful as Alvarez, which is the case for all but a few boxers. However, he’s an underrated technician who throws – and lands – more punches than the Mexican pound-for-pounder.
According to CompuBox, Benavidez is the most accurate puncher in the sport. He lands 38.4% of every punch he throws, which well ahead of No. 2 Gennadiy Golovkin at 36.5%. Alvarez connects at a rate of 35.1%.
“That’s because I know what I’m doing,” Benavidez said.
Indeed. Benavidez isn’t fleet of foot but he’s adept at closing the distance between himself and his opponents by fighting behind his jab, pounding the body and generally suffocating his opponents with a high volume of heavy punches.
That’s what Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) has to look forward to on Saturday, one of the most destructive offensive forces in recent years.
What about Plant’s power? He’s coming off a one-punch ninth-round knockout of veteran Anthony Dirrell in his most recent fight, this past October. Plant left no doubt that he can hurt a credible opponent.
Benavidez isn’t Dirrell, though. Benavidez is a big, durable super middleweight who, at 26 years old, is in his prime. Dirrell, 38, had a lot of miles on his odometer when he met Plant and might’ve been ripe for such a fate.
Does Plant have the power to hurt or at least slow down Benavidez? Of course. Is it likely? No.
None of the above means that Plant can’t win the fight on Saturday. He has the all-around ability, big-fight experience and the confidence that comes from a Knockout of the Year to beat anyone on the right night.
Plus, Benavidez’s doubters would point out that Plant represents a step up in opposition for the Phoenix native. He’s a two-time titleholder but he doesn’t have a particularly strong resume. His best opponent might’ve been a younger version of Dirrell, who Benavidez also stopped in nine rounds.
It’s reasonable to say that Benavidez has yet to prove that he belongs among the best handful of fighters in the world.
I’m convinced that time will come. I believe Benavidez has the ability and fire power to beat anyone at 168, including Alvarez. You’ll see what I mean on Saturday, when knocks out the most threatening opponent in his career in the second half of the fight.