By Dan Ambrose: David Benavidez is certain that he’s going to knock out the cocky Caleb ‘Sweethands’ Plant on March 25th in their scheduled 12 round main event on Showtime PPV.
Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs) has been working on sitting down on his shots a lot more, and he believes his superior conditioning will lead to him ultimately wearing down and stopping the 30-year-old former IBF 168-lb champion Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) in their fight event at 9:00 p.m. ET at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
It’s difficult to know how Plant will fight because he’d been mostly a boxer during his career, but in his last fight, he showed power for the first time, knocking out Anthony Dirrell with a single left hook to the head in the 9th round last October.
Plant’s sparring partners have been raining about the pop that he has on his punches, and that could mean that he’s going to stand and fight Benavidez on March 25th rather than running like many believe he’ll do.
Benavidez vs. Plant, how to watch?
Fans can watch Caleb ‘Sweethands’ Plant and David Benavidez battle on March 25th on Showtime PPV at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The event begins at 9:00 p.m. ET.
“If it takes the first round all the way to the 12th round, we’re going to keep pushing on the gas, and I know my gas tank is better than everybody’s,” said David Benavidez to Fight Hub TV about his belief that he’s going to knock out Caleb Plant on March 25th.
“I don’t feel that much pressure in this fight. I’ll probably feel more the week of the fight, but I’ve been taking care of business. I ain’t slacked. I’ve been sparring 12 rounds for the past two weeks, and before that, I’ve been doing ten consistently.
“Now, I just feel like I’ve got to keep pushing hard. This is the biggest moment of my life. Like I said, I’m definitely going to take advantage of this moment.
“We’re definitely coming to 175. Cruiserweight is more for when I’m in my 30s. Right now, we’re taking it step by step. I know people want to take it into the future, but you got to take everything first before you take anything else on.
“Now when I hit, I think the shots are going to take more of an effect early in the fight. That’s why I’m predicting an earlier KO because now I’m sitting down on my punches more. I’m hitting harder, and I think it happened at the perfect time.
“I’ve got a good second wind, I throw a lot of punches, and it’s going to happen for sure,” Benavidez continued about his belief that he’s going to KO former IBF super middleweight champion ‘Sweethands’ Plant.
“He has the ability to move around, but he has a lot of holes in his game. When he fights someone bigger and stronger in the second half of the fight, he kind of fades away. Me in the second half of the fight, I get better and get more wind.
“He can say a lot of things, but on March 25th, I’m definitely going to win by knockout. Whatever he goes, I’m going to be ready for whatever he does. It’s my job to be ready. If he wants to sit in there and bang, we’ll bang. If he wants to run around and chase him around a little bit, then that’s what I’m going to do.
“My mentality is seek & destroy, and that’s exactly what is going to happen. When he’s in my face, he doesn’t say s**t, but then when I see him on the Internet, he’s talking about how he’s going to beat me. That’s the s**t that bugs me. That’s the type of character he wants to play, then that’s what he’s going to do.
“I expect my body to respond, and It’s going to be one of the greatest performances I’ve had up to this date. I really want to be a legend before I’m done. So I’ve got to do everything right from here.
Plant vs. Benavidez, start time
The March 25th event between unbeaten former two-time WBC super middleweight champion Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs) and former IBF 168-lb champion Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) starts att9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, live on Showtime PPV.
“Canelo has his fight with Ryder and then Bivol. It won’t be able to happen next, but if we can get [Jermall] Charlo in there, it would be great, but he hasn’t fought in almost two years, and I’m not expecting that to happen.
“If we could get Morrell in there, that would be a really good fight. He’s a really good fighter. I would love to challenge him because he’s really good, but I’d beat him. I feel I’ll beat him, and that’ll elevate my style. Then after that, Canelo.
“If we can’t get the fight with David Morrell, Canelo, Charlo, or Andrade, then I think it’s time to go up to 175. It’s just competition. You’ve got to recognize talent when you see it, and I would like to challenge myself against him,” said Benavidez about wanting to fight Morrell.
“Just because a fighter doesn’t have a big fan base or star power, it doesn’t mean he’s not good. That’s the bad thing about boxing now. If you’re not sellable, then they don’t give a f**k about you.
“If we can do that [fight Morrell], that makes the stock go up too. We get a great fight and give the people what they want to see, and then we move on from there. I feel everybody deserves an opportunity like that, especially a fighter like him. He’s a great fighter.
Plant-Benavidez, where is it located?
Caleb Plant vs. David Benavidez will be taking place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 25th.
“Then I deserve my opportunity with Canelo. I’m not the type of person where I say, ‘Ah, f**k this guy. I’m not not going to fight him. I’m a star,’ because I don’t think like that. I think strictly as a boxer, and I think about competing and wanting to be the best.
“When you’re done, all people see is your resume, and I’m not going to lie. Right now, my resume isn’t too strong, but it’s not my fault. I’ve been wanting to fight all these guys. What matters to me more is the respect from the fans and, actually, the titles.
“Obviously, the titles are a big part, but if people say they want to see me in harder fights, then I want to give people what they want to see. I want to see me in harder fights, too because, from the fights that I’ve had, it hasn’t really been too much competition.
“If you think you can get yourself out of the deep end, then more power to you, but if you think you’re going to drown, sometimes that’s all people think. They have no confidence in themselves,” said Benaivdez.
