David Benavidez's father believes Caleb Plant will be stopped in the later rounds

Caleb Plant won't be able to handle the pressure and strength of David Benavidez, according to his father and trainer.

On March 25 in Las Vegas, Jose Benavidez Sr. predicts that David Benavidez, who will defend the WBC interim super middleweight championship against Plant, will win via knockout. While Canelo Alvarez is the only opponent to halt Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) inside the distance in 23 professional fights, the younger Benavidez has knocked out 88 percent of his opponents since turning pro (26-0, 23 KOs).

“We’re training hard not just to win the fight, but to look spectacular and get to even bigger fights,” Jose Benavidez Sr. stated during his son’s open workout recently at their family’s gym in Burien, Washington, just outside of Seattle. “I believe that David is gonna stop Caleb Plant in the eighth or ninth round.”

With his unrelenting aggression and heavy punching, both to the body and head, Benavidez often overwhelms opponents. Benavidez has demonstrated an iron chin as well, but the intelligent, skilled Plant is the best boxer he has consented to face over the course of a professional career he started at the age of 16.

Benavidez believes that Plant will falter under his pressure given what he has observed each time the former IBF super middleweight champion has faced strong opponents.

“You can see that every time Caleb is in the ring with a power puncher, he’s not comfortable,” David Benavidez said. “He beat Jose Uzcategui, but he was hurt in the fight and then Canelo hurt him. Even Anthony Dirrell hit him with good shots, and he’s not a hitter like that.”

At the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on October 15, Plant viciously knocked out Dirrell with a picture-perfect left hook in the ninth round. Former WBC 168-pound champion Dirrell (34-3-2, 25 KOs) of Flint, Michigan, was stopped by Benavidez too in the ninth round of their 12-round battle, which took place in September 2019 at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Dirrell was cut badly over his right eye but was still standing.

Benavidez believes Plant might go toe-to-toe with him more than people expect because of Plant’s spectacular knockout of Dirrell.

“I’ve got the power and I feel like I’m faster,” Benavidez said. “I just have to get my feet in the right position, because he’s going to be moving a lot. I think he has a little bit more confidence after beating Dirrell, though, so we’ll see if he wants to trade with me.”