At Thursday’s final press conference before Saturday’s bad blood grudge match, both David Benavidez and Caleb Plant reaffirmed their dislike for one another and guaranteed victory.
Despite being a two-time world champ, it’s true that the super middleweight top contender will be in the biggest fight of his career this Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, atop a Showtime/Premier Boxing Champions pay-per-view card. He claims to be focused and in the best shape of his career coming into this important matchup.
“I’m gonna break Caleb’s jaw on Saturday night, by the sixth round,” the 26-year-old Benavidez told media.
“I’ve been working extremely hard and I’m super ready. All the talk is done. I see Caleb has been doing that grave digging gesture, but he’s digging his own grave. We’re gonna see what that chin is like on Saturday.
“Every time he fights a real true super middleweight, he gets hurt. He’s gonna be in there with the hardest hitting and most accurate fighter in the weight class. We’re gonna see what’s up.
“I gave him all of my attention. Back in the day I hit hard, but I didn’t really train that hard. Now that I’ve really prepared myself, I’m really dangerous and he should be worried. He definitely gave me the extra motivation because I really don’t like this guy and I want to shut him up. I’m definitely going to be pushing for the knockout every single round.
“I’ve hurt everyone I’ve gotten in the ring with, and I can’t say the same for him. I guarantee I’m gonna hurt him.
“Caleb Plant doesn’t like me and I don’t like him, but it’s a classic fight between a really good boxer and a really good puncher. He’s going to be running all night and it’s going to be a cat and mouse game for me. I definitely have to be on my p’s and q’s.
“The winner is right there in position to fight for all the belts. But I’m not worried about anything else except this fight. I have to win this fight before I can get where I want to go.”
The 30-year-old Caleb Plant, meanwhile, got a taste of the biggest of the big in boxing when he faced superstar Saul “Canelo” Alvarez in November of 2021. He was stopped in the eleventh round of that high-profile bout, but wants to return to that level more than anything. He’ll have to beat a highly-motivated Benavidez in order to do that.
“The fans are going to see me get my hand raised. That’s what I’m guaranteeing,” Plant told media on Thursday’s press conference.
“I’ve worked extremely hard for this fight. I don’t care if he’s already on weight. That’s what you’re supposed to do. Welcome to the club.
“You got your newfound muscles that you’ve been showing off all week. Welcome to the club. I don’t need the right opponent in front of me to start working hard. I’ve been this disciplined and I’ve walked the straight line. I’ve been doing it since I was a little kid.
“You have a real one in front of you on Saturday. I’m no blown up middleweight, I’m the real deal. You’re gonna see.
“I’m one of the best in the world at what I do. We’ve yet to see if he can perform at this level, but we’re gonna find out on Saturday.
“The winner of this fight is right there at the top. Canelo has that spot right now and I’m super motivated for this fight so that I can eventually right that wrong. First, I’m gonna handle business on Saturday night.”
Fans should be in for a good one.
