Via Allan Fox: David Benavidez believes he will battle Caleb Plant in May after he takes care of Jose Uzcategui for the first time in January.
Benavidez (26-0.23 KOs) says he was surprised to see Plant versus Anthony Dirrell last Saturday night called the WBC super-middleweight title knockout, since he won it. that title last year and also won the provisional WBC 168. -lb header.
Benavidez said that if Plant had a rematch with Canelo Alvarez before he was shot, he would have been upset because he should have fought the superstar since he was a longer mandatory WBC.
‘Sweethands’ Plant’s knockout win over Dirrell impressed Benavidez, but he still believes he’s not a big boxer. Such was the case that Plant caught the 37-year-old with a perfect shot in the 9th round to qualify for the knockout.
Benavidez says there’s no reason he can’t fight Plant in May as he intends to beat IBF super middleweight champion Uzcategui in January. He felt he wouldn’t have any problems winning that match.
“I felt it was a very close fight from the start. The shot he caught was a clean shot. You can’t take clean pictures like that,” David Benavidez told Fighthypereact to Caleb Plant’s knockout win over Anthony Dirrell last Saturday night.
“It’s not Caleb’s strength that I have to worry about. Despite his knockout, he has no power. He has a really good boxing ability. That’s where the problem would be. I caught him and cut the ring off and kept him in one place.
“The thing with the hook on the left, it was thrown out perfectly. It was a good left hook,” Benavidez said of the left hook Plant knocked out Dirrell in the ninth round. “You can’t take pictures like that.
“Caleb certainly has power. I’m not going to just go through his power and get hit with anything because that’s not the smart thing to do. Well, we have a few things sorted out for him.
“I feel like if he [Plant] want to get to Canelo, the only way to get to Canelo is through me,” Benavidez said, reacting to Plant’s failure to mention his name in his post-match press conference last Saturday night following his win over Dirrell. “We both want to get there [Canelo].
“It’s weird. He didn’t mention my name. I was watching the fight and I saw it in the bottom corner [of the screen], ‘WBC title remover.’ So I don’t know what that means. I fought for [WBC] provisional title and fight in the other two title eliminations. If anyone is going to win the WBC title, it’s me.
“I don’t know if his WBC title elimination means we might be fighting next or whatever. I just hope they [WBC] Don’t try to twist me and put Caleb in the front. Imagine he’s going to have a rematch before I fight Canelo.
“I hope that doesn’t happen. I felt that if we both wanted to get to Canelo, we both had to get past each other. We must overcome this war with.
“I feel like that war [with Plant] will happen because I don’t plan to lose [to Uzcategui in January]. I don’t feel like Uzcategui would do anything to derail me or get me out of a fight with Caleb Plant.
“I think this fight will add a lot more to make the fight for me and Caleb that much more interesting. I have [Jose] Uzcategui in January. Then I think it’s the fight that’s going to happen in May.
“First things first. We had to take care of Uzcategui so we could join the war in May. In my fight with Dirrell, towards the end of the 4th round, I started to dominate. With him [Plant] and Dirrell, it’s more of a boxing match.
“It was like a chess match. You can see Caleb setting up some stuff and you can see Anthony Dirrell timing things he’s setting up.
“You can see that when Canelo put pressure on Caleb, you can see that the pressure ended up causing Caleb to bend over.
“It will be a great fight. I feel that fight will bring out the best for me,” Benavidez said. “I just look forward to it whenever it happens. I feel like my motivation, stamina and strength will eventually take over the fight [with Plant].
“90% of the Caleb Plant fight will happen after this one, and I’m even more motivated than ever. Yes, I did, and that’s why I’m excited too,” Benavidez said when asked if he’d received confirmation behind the scenes that Plant would be next for him. “That’s why I’m really motivated.
“I have to beat this boot camp, push it to the limit and look great, then go fight Caleb Plant. I think it also makes more sense. Everyone wants that fight [Benavidez vs. Plant]. David Morrell can wait.
“The battle between me and Caleb has been going on for a long time, and I feel the time has come. It’s the best time to make it happen. We are both really motivated.
“Caleb said he wants a rematch against Canelo. He just took down Anthony Dirrell, so I’m sure he’s really motivated. I just have to go in there and win this war [against Uzcategui] and look really good like I usually do and then move on to the next game. I believe the next fight will be Caleb Plant.
“You’re going to see my fans fighting Caleb’s fans, and it’s like a big fight, and I think that’s what makes it 100% more personal and a better fight and better build.
“Yes, I am ready for whatever comes with this. I am very excited,” Benavidez said.
