Caleb Plant says Canelo Alvarez punches harder than David Benavidez but is not at his level in terms of boxing. Former IBF super middleweight champion Plant (22-2, 13 KOs) lost both fights but was stopped in the 11th round by Canelo in November 2021 and then went 12 rounds against Benavidez in March 2023.
Benavidez's lack of power at 175
Based on the results, Benavidez comes up short, but Plant says he doesn't know who would win against Canelo (61-2-2, 39 KOs). Still, it doesn't hurt Benavidez's future at 175 that Canelo is outboxing him because he should have better power than that if he's going to compete against the top fighters, Artur Beterbiev, Dmitry Bivol and Anthony Yarde.
Benavidez will have to rethink fighting at 175 if he is knocked out by the winner of the October 12 fight between Beterbiev and Bivol unless he wants to hang around like a vampire bat, waiting for them to retire or get too old. With good nutrition, Benavidez can safely return to 168 and continue to dominate lesser opposition with his light heavyweight size.
Benavidez was outscored in the first six rounds of his fight with Plant, and the only reason he won was because Caleb gassed out in the second half of the contest.
Plant has always had limited stamina, which cost him in his fights with Benavidez and Canelo. In January 2019, he was lucky enough to defeat José Uzcátegui and take the IBF super middleweight title. Plant faded in that fight and was severely punished by Uzcategui.
That's Plant's best win in his 10-year professional career. Not 37-year-old Anthony Dirrell, who was well past his prime when they fought in October 2022.
Canelo Hits Harder, Benavidez Throws Better Combinations
“Canelo hits a lot with one punch. He hits harder than David,” said Caleb Plant on the Fight Hub TV YouTube channel, revealing that Canelo Alvarez hits harder than David Benavidez. “David brings them together [punches] not just Canelo but most people in boxing. David knows how to put his hands together.
Benavidez hits hard with his punches and doesn't seem to be able to throw straight punches with full power. That could be a sign of hand problems. He mainly focuses on throwing continuous combinations, and has been able to get away with that style because his opponents are smaller and weaker than him.
He ran into problems when he fought Oleksandr Gvozdyk last June and was outclassed by him when he threw combos. Benavidez took a key shot from Gvozdyk and looked beaten by the end of the fight.
If that was Artur Beterbiev or David Morrell, 'Mexican King' Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) would be in trouble. Benavidez will have to change his fighting style to have any chance of defeating the top fighters at 175.
“Both have their pros and cons. Both of them did not defend well, and they are sharp,” said Plant when asked who wins between Benavidez and Canelo. “Both are great fighters. There are differences in styles, but both are very good at what they do. With the Canelo fight, I didn't have that good of a camp. Sometimes things don't work out that way. There are no excuses.”
Plant must have negative fields all the time because he is breathing when he goes past six rounds. He has been fighting for a long time that this matter has not been addressed now. A year and a half stay will not help Plant.
We will likely see him take on Trevor McCumby in their fight next month on September 14 on the undercard of Canelo vs. Edgar Berlanga at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The WBA interim super middleweight belt will be at stake in the fight between Plant vs. McCumby.
“I had a great camp with David. I got sick on the day of the camp, but it was over a month ago,' said Plant about his fight with Benavidez. “I don't want to blame my performance on that. It was too far to be like, 'Oh, I was sick,' but it had an effect on the camp, but that's life.
“There are things I was able to do with Canelo that I can't do with David. “I feel like Canelo has a lot of experience and maybe he has more experience because of the experience,” said Plant when asked who wins between Canelo and Benavidez. “I think he hits harder than David. At the same time, there are things that David does better than Canelo, as I said.”
It doesn't look like Canelo and Benavidez will ever fight, so comparing them is pointless. Plant should give his thoughts on the upcoming fight between Benavidez and Beterbiev or Bivol because that is his direction.
“In a war as big as that, the dice are rolled. There are a lot of variables going on,” said Plant, who couldn't choose between Canelo and Benavidez.
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