By Sean Jones: Demetrius Andrade was amused when told that David Benavidez had told the media that he looked “scared” during their face-off today during their kick-off press conference for their headliner fight on Showtime PPV on November 25th.
Benavidez needs to humble himself because he almost lost his last fight against Caleb Plant, and now he’s facing a fighter that is a level above that, with the slick boxer/puncher Andrade. He could be brought down to earth by Andrade, who makes him understand that he’s not the ‘Mexican Monster’ but rather a classic example of a weight bully.
Andrade (32-0, 19 KOs) laughed about Benavidez (27-0, 23 KOs), saying he looked scared and he wants him to continue to try and intimidate him before their contest next month because he feels it will make him perform better at the Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas.
WBC interim super middleweight champion Benavidez, 26, maybe the one that is worried about this fight because he recently turned down a match against David Morrell Jr, and fans think he lacked the courage to face the talented Cuban after watching him knock out his last couple of opponents.
We saw fear from Benavidez & his father, Jose Sr. when Morrell was calling him out, and he chose not to accept the fight.
Whatever self-confidence Benavidez had, he lost it after his close call against Plant. Since that near-loss, Benavidez has not been the same guy. Before that, he acted like he was invincible, but Plant put him in his place.
Benavidez hasn’t made the big money that other fighters like Jermell Charlo and Caleb Plant have, with both being given massive paydays against Canelo Alvarez.
Demetrius dares Benavidez to scare him
“I have never been like that. As things develop, I’m going see him more and more, and we get to s**t talking. He’s not talking, so I don’t I don’t understand,” said Demetrius Andrade to the media today about David Benavidez.
“I was scared? Yeah, get me scared because I’m going to be more dangerous. Get me scared. Yes, I want to be scared. Get me scared because the scared I am, the more dangerous I’m going to be, the more I’m going to want to protect myself, the more I’m going want to throw punches, the more I’m going to want to get in there and show you what I have in store.”
If Benavidez loses this fight, it’s game over for him. Obviously, he can forget about Canelo completely because it would be clear that he won’t ever get that fight after losing to Andrade. Staying at 168 would be pointless for Benavidez, as he’s not going to beat Morrell, and ‘Boo Boo’ Andrade would have his number.
He’s not going to risk a second loss to Andrade and be entirely finished. Benavidez would have no choice but to move up to 175 to fight in a division more suited to his huge size.
“So yeah, do that,” said Andrade, reacting to being told that Benavidez said that he looked scared during their face-off today.
“That’s why November 25th, you have to tune in. You guys are going to be there. People need to buy them pay-per-views. People need to show support for this beautiful fight that’s about to go down, and you’re going to see the mastermind at his best. That’s it,” said Andrade when asked to reveal how he plans on fighting Benavidez.
Andrade isn’t going to spill his game plan for the ‘Mexican Monster’ Benavidez because his dad, Jose Sr., will be like a vulture, watching the video to pick up every little morsel he can get to help his son win.
Jose Sr. obviously doesn’t want Benavidez to lose before he gets the Canelo retirement payday. That’s why he was so against him fighting Morrell. He could see the future and recognized nothing good would come from tangling with the talented Cuban.
“Listen, Caleb Plant is not me, nor does Caleb Plant have the footwork or the IQ or the power that I have,” said Andrade. “Caleb Plant, I respect him. He’s also a great fighter; he took the opportunity and the chance to fight David Benavidez, but I also showed Plant a lot of things during our time when you used to come to my camps and stuff like that.”
Plant looked like he needed oxygen after the fifth round against Benavidez, as he was gassed out from the pace of the fight. Like in his fights with Canelo Alvarez and Jose Uzcategui, Plant faded at the halfway point in the contest and was easy pickings for Benavidez from the sixth round on.
“So I got the sauce, trust me. I think Mike Tyson got really, really, really high when he named Benavidez ‘The Monster,'” said Andrade. “I think it’s putting pressure and then figuring out how to put his combinations together when he gets really close,” said Andrade when asked what is Benavidez’s best attributes. But as you saw when he fought Caleb Plant, Caleb Plant was able to maneuver and do his thing.”
Mike Tyson should have looked first at Benavidez’s resume before he gave him the ‘Mexican Monster’ moniker because if he had taken a close look, he would have recognized that it was empty and A-level opposition. He arguably lost to Ronald Gavril in their first fight in 2017 and was getting beaten by Plant until he ran out of gas.
“Plant’s not the hardest hitter, and he wasn’t in the best condition,” said Andrade. “I don’t think for that fight, but he showed what little exposure it would take to continue to beat David Benavidez and keep him at bay. There are a lot of holes.”
Yeah, Plant exposed a ton of holes in Benavidez’s game and showed that he’s helpless when his opponents box from the outside. It was only after Plant got tired that Benavidez was able to get in close and machine gun him with combinations.
“I want to fight everybody. I want to fight everybody,” said Andrade. “Whatever opportunities I can get, I’ll take them. If I could get any of these guys back then, I would have got them back then, but David is willing to take the fight. I’m willing to take the fight. So the answer is always yes on my side. I have never said no to any of them.”
As long as Andrade realizes that he’s never going to get a fight against Canelo Alvarez or the Charlo brothers, he should be able to get all the fights he wants at 168 after his November 25th contest against Benavidez.
If Andrade wins like many expect him to, there will be a well-paying rematch, and that’s where the big money comes in. Benavidez will be completely desperate by that point, swinging for the fences, hoping against hope he can land a lucky shot that knocks Andrade into oblivion.
“It’s just now is the time. I’m a free agent as far as not signed to nobody, and I got myself in this position to be able to come over anywhere and make the best fights happen,” said Andrade. “That’s it. Number one in the world, that’s what this fight brings. I’m going to do everything,” said Andrade when asked if he’s going to counter-punch through the holes in Benavidez’s game.
