LAS VEGAS: There's only so long Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez can deny David Benavidez — one of the baddest mother f---ers in the game.
Benavidez returns to the ring Saturday to headline a Premier Boxing Champions event on Showtime pay-per-view against the unbeaten trickster Demetrius Andrade, and the Mexican 'Monster' carries great momentum into the bout that, he told ProBox TV, he will continue long after the ring, to lure Canelo into one of the greatest shootouts in Latin American history.
"I'm excited to be back," Benavidez told us. "It's another big pay-per-view event for me and I'm excited to return and keep giving the fans great fights."
Victory in impressive fashion could elevate Benavidez into the 'Fighter of the Year' conversation after his unrelenting tenacity saw him out-gun Caleb Plant in front of a raucous, partisan crowd, earlier in the year.
Reporting from ringside at the time, ProBox TV were enthralled by Benavidez's engine and how he started fast and strong, but just seemed to wax rather than wane in the championship rounds.
Having also covered mixed martial arts, it's easy for me to draw comparisons to teak tough ultimate fighters Nate and Nick Diaz.
The Diaz brothers, like Benavidez, have a fan-friendly fighting style and have remarkable stamine. For Nate and Nick, it's a cardio vascular asset born from a passion for triathlons.
We mentioned this to Benavidez, who welcomed the comparison. "That's the dangerous thing about me, man. It's that my gas tank is unlike any others in boxing sport.
"I train extremely hard," he said. "Fights are won in the training camp and we put 100% of ourselves in camp. As you saw in my fight against Plant, I was able to keep pushing it.
"And I feel this fight will be exactly the same. Demetrius Andrade has tricks in his bag, and is a very competitive fighter, but I feel right now I'm a different level to him — I'm excited to showcase that Saturday."
David Benavidez is boxing's bad mother f---er
Renowned for his two-fight rivalry with Conor McGregor, in which he defeated the Irishman with a rear-naked choke before dropping a majority decision to him just months later, Nate Diaz also competed against Jorge Masvidal for the symbolic "BMF" belt in UFC — which stood for Bad Mother F---er.
When it comes to boxing, few fighters in this sport epitomize that acronym more than Benavidez as, he, like Diaz, not only shows tremendous cardio, but has developed a cult-like following in his sport.
To retain a BMF's cardio, Benavidez spars 15 rounds per day with three different sparring partners, while running six miles every other day. He also has 13-week camps. This, he says, provides him with the necessary tools to put up Compubox-breaking numbers.
Benavidez vs. Andrade- Benavidez's relentless aggression & accuracy (63 punches thrown per round/37.6% conn. pct.- #1 in boxing) vs. Andrade's defensive excellence (oppon. land just 5.4 punches per round-#2 in boxing & just 18% of their punches). #BenavidezAndrade pic.twitter.com/OzI1gDHMi3
— CompuBox (@CompuBox) November 25, 2023
Though he spends time in Seattle and Phoenix, with Plant regarded as the Las Vegas local, it was Benavidez who brought all the fans to the March event at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, creating one of the year's best combat sport atmospheres.
His rising status as the people's champion is something he is confident he'll replicate come Saturday, against Andrade, at the Mandalay Bay's Michelob Ultra Arena. "It will be a packed Benavidez house," he told ProBox TV.
Judging from media events this week, from the open workouts to to the public weigh-in, it looks like he's right.
"I'm looking forward to giving the fans a great fight," he said. "I want to give them their money's worth. I want the people to feel happy and comfortable after spending money on their tickets. They're the ones supporting the whole show."
The Canelo fight is 'inevitable,' Benavidez said
Benavidez is entering complete package territory — he can fight, he can pack out arenas, and he's headlining pay-per-view events. He speaks Spanish, English, and has an undeniable aura on stage … let alone in the ring.
Considering the type of opponents Canelo has already fought, Benavidez has arguably done more than enough to warrant that fight.
However, he doesn't want to be seen to be waiting around for Canelo, and instead wants to write his own history by taking on tough opponents.
"Whenever Canelo is ready to fight, he'll make his decision who he wants to fight," Benavidez told us. "I can't keep trying to wait for Canelo's call. I want to make my own history, and be the greatest fighter of my generation.
"I'm just going to go out there and fight the best fighters I can fight, and whenever Canelo is ready, I'll be right there. I'm not going nowhere. And, when it does happen, it'll be one of the greatest fights in Mexican history."
Since Canelo signed a three-fight deal with Premier Boxing Champions, an organization Benavidez, too, is allied with, it stands to logic that, providing he wins this weekend, he could be the second, or third, opponent on Alvarez's PBC contract.
"I'm pretty sure that's going to happen," Benavidez said.
But regardless of PBC, Benavidez added, he also has "momentum." Elaborating, he said: "A lot of fans are calling for this fight. Ask any casual boxing fan who they want to see — it's Benavidez vs. Canelo.
"We have momentum on our side and so we just have to keep showing out and keep giving people a reason to support me. I'm going to keep winning, and looking impressive.
"I won't wait for someone to give me a fight. But while I do write my own history, against Plant and Andrade, it's also giving me experience. This is my second pay-per-view and I'm getting used to things at the PPV fights, the big venues, and the big crowds."
He finished: "It's inevitable a fight with Canelo happens. That fight is going to come, and I will be victorious."
