Benavidez on Andrade: “I’m going to beat the [stuffing] out of him”

By Brian Webber: David Benavidez says he’s going to administer a beating on Demetrius Andrade when he defends his WBC interim super middleweight title against him on November 25th on Showtime’s last PPV at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas.

Three weeks before the fight on November 25h, Benavidez’s skin looks pale and unhealthy, and he’s already looking underfed.

It’s painfully obvious that Benavidez needs to move up to 175 before it’s too late, and he winds up suffering his first loss.

It might happen this time, as Andrade is strong at this weight and very athletic. Unlike ‘The Mexican Monster,’ Demetrius isn’t killing himself to make the 168-lb limit.

Benavidez (27-0, 23 KOs), exhibiting a black eye, states that he has four different sparring patterns, and he’s sparring from 12 to 14 rounds a day, working hard.

This is the same formula of training that Benavidez used in his last fight in March against Caleb Plant, and it paid off with him winning a 12 round unanimous decision.

Some boxing fans believe Benavidez overdid it in training camp, as he looked wasted in appearance and not his usual powerful self in the fight. Plant, who had been knocked out by Canelo Alvarez in 2021, made it the full twelve rounds against Benavidez and was never hurt.

It’s vital that Benavidez not drain himself as he did in his fight with Plant, as he looked like a dead man walking at the weigh-in and did not perform up to his past standards.

David needs to be healthy for this fight because this could be the toughest of his career and more challenging than his recent one against former IBF super middleweight champion ‘Sweethands’ Plant last March.

Benavidez needs to find a new home

“It’s a big deal for me because I grew up watching Showtime and HBO boxing. Just having the legendary telecast that produces boxing like that is something I’ve always watched, and I want it to go out with a bang. That’s exactly what we’re going to do on November 25th,” said David Benavidez to Fighthype about his fight with Demetrius Andrade being Showtime’s last PPV before they stop broadcasting the sport.

Showtime leaving boxing means that Benavidez & Andrade, both PBC fighters, must find another network to fight on. It’s still unknown where they’ll be at. The choices are limited to these two: DAZN or Amazon Prime.

“That’s what we’re doing. We have some good sparring partners here, and sometimes you get hit,” said Benavidez when asked about his black eye injury that he got during training for his fight with Andrade. “That’s what happens when you’re doing hard work.”

It looked like Benavidez was hit pretty hard for him to get a black eye, and hopefully, he doesn’t have the fight beaten out of him in camp. Getting pummeled by four sparring partners in 12 to 14 rounds of sparring every day can’t be good for Benavidez.

Grueling training camp routine

“Sometimes, the punches get through,” said Benavidez. “We’re having some really good sparring, and we’re having some sparring partners that emulate ‘Boo Boo,’ and we’re having really good sparring sessions.”

Benavidez has always been easy to hit, and you can only imagine the kind of punishment he’s enduring in training camp, sparring 12-14 rounds a day with four different sparring partners.

He might be better off not sparring at all and focusing on weight management to get down to 168 safely without it sapping every last bit of energy from his body, making him an easy mark for the 2008 U.S. Olympian Andrade.

“What are they saying on Twitter? Denis Douglin is no longer here anymore, so whatever his name is, he should keep his mouth shut,” said Benavidez when told that there are reports that he’s using Douglin as his sparring partner for this fight, whereas Demetrius is getting all these excellent sparring help.

“We have good sparring partners here. We worked with Denis Douglin for the first couple of weeks, but he’s not here anymore. We got good sparring partners.

“I hope he can do some good things in the ring. That’s why we’re training extremely hard for this fight. It’s a good fight. Andrade is a good opponent, so I definitely have to bring 100% for him.

“As for him saying I’m going to be his Thanksgiving meal, he’s wrong about that. I’m working as hard as he is, if not harder. We’ll see who the best man is. It’s whoever works the hardest, whoever trains the hardest.

“That’s why we took this fight because we knew it’s going to be a really tough fight, but I’m willing to take the challenge. I’m willing to give it all I have, and I know it’s going to be more than enough to get the job done,” said Benavidez.

You got to respect Benavidez for taking the fight with Andrade, but of course, he would have looked a little more courageous if he’d accepted the title shot offer from WBA ‘regular’ super middleweight champion David Morrell Jr. He offered Benavidez a chance to fight him for his WBA title, and surprisingly, he didn’t accept.

He went the route of the 35-year-old Andrade, a newcomer to the 168-lb division, having fought just once in the weight class, beating journeyman Demond Nicholson in an unimpressive performance. Is that a cherry-pick on Benavidez’s part in selecting Andrade over Morrell Jr.? It’s hard not to see it that way.

“I’m ready for whatever comes my way. If he wants to stay there and brawl, we can brawl,” said Benavidez. “If he’s going to make me chase him all night, then that’s what I’m going to do.”

Benavidez with plans A, B & C

“I’m going to follow my game plan. I know there’s stuff that he does for a fact, but if he says he’s going to go in there and beat me up, supposedly,” said Benavidez. “Fine, he can try. I’m not going to shy away from that. So, we’ll see what he does.

“If he fights one way, I have a plan for that. If he fights another way, I have a fine for that. At this stage, you have to have plans A, B & C, and that’s exactly what we’re doing. We’re working hard, and I can’t wait for November 25th.”

It’s reasonable to assume that Andrade is going to plan to box and move against Benavidez, not slug it out with him on November 25th. Andrade doesn’t have the youth, power, or size of Benavidez, who will likely rehydrate to around 190 lbs.

“I’m going to beat the f**k out of him. That’s exactly what I’m going to do,” said Benavidez. “I’m just working hard and working on everything. I feel really good about this camp. I’ve been at this three-month camp, working hard, sparring 12, 13, and 14 rounds with four different sparring partners.

“It’s the same routine. We’ve been using this recipe for all the fights, and we’re going to keep using it. All the fights come out good. There’s some stuff that we’ve got to work on during the preseason. So, I feel like you guys are going to see everything.

“You’re going to see speed, head movement, power, defense, you’re going to see everything and punches in bunches. I’ve been really excited for this fight. There’s not been a lot of tension in the fight, but we’ve both been working hard.

“I’ve been working extremely hard in the gym. So this is going to be a classic David Benavidez fight. I’m going to go in there, beat the s**t out of him, throw a lot of punches, and give the fans what they want to see,” said Benavidez.

It will be a lot harder for Benavidez to batter Andrade compared to his recent opponents, Plant, David Lemiez, and Kyrone Davis, because he’s not as one-dimensional as those fighters were.