Returning to the squared circle this weekend at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada – unbeaten super middleweight puncher, David Benavidez looks to successfully defend his interim WBC super middleweight crown for the first time in his second reign – taking on former IBF super middleweight best, Caleb Plant in ‘Sin City’.
Boasting an impressive, undefeated 26-0 professional record, Phoenix, Arizona-born boxer, Benavidez – who first clinched super middleweight gold under the WBC banner back in 2017 with a split decision win over Ronald Gavril, took interim spoils back in May of last year on home soil with a knockout win over David Lemieux.
As for Plant, the 22-1 puncher, hailing from Ashland City, Tennessee, returned to the winner’s enclosure back for the first time in his naive professional boxing career back in October in Brooklyn, New York – stopping common-foe, Anthony Dirrell with a blistering ninth round knockout victory.
Dropping just one career loss, the 30-year-old orthodox puncher dropped a penultimate knockout loss against middleweight division kingpin, Canelo Alvarez in a blockbuster championship fight back in November 2021 in Nevada.
And ahead of their Sunday showdown at the historic MGM Grand, Benavidez, who enters the title fray as defending champion once more – enters the bout, currently, as a supreme betting favorite outright to return Plant to losing ways – sitting at -300 over on BetWay.
Despite dropping just a single career loss to middleweight icon, Alvarez, Plant is already fighting the bookies ahead of his monumental championship offing against Benavidez – with the Tennessee native placed as a +225 betting underdog.
A blistering knockout artist and puncher, Benavidez, 26, has racked up 23 knockout victories in just 10 years inside the professional squared circle.
Snatching a slew of recent stoppage successes, following a decision and subsequent rematch knockout win over the above-mentioned, Gavril – Benavidez has stopped the likes of J’Leon Love, Roamer Alexis, Angulo, as well as common-foe, Dirrell with strikes.
Hooking up gloves under the Showtime! pay-per-view banner, Benavidez can be wagered as quite a heavy favorite to stop Plant inside the 12 round distance this weekend in Las Vegas, with BetWay offering the ‘Copper State’ product as a -140 favorite to leave the ringside judges out of the equation on Sunday.
Racking up 13 career knockout victories, Plant is not currently considered all that likely to not just hand Benavidez his first career loss – but also, expected to fail in a bid to KO the Arizonian, with odds of +700 currently floated at the time of publication.
Taking out the veteran, Limeaux inside just three rounds and inside less than 10 minutes last year, Benavidez appears to be favored to stop Plant before the conclusion of the ninth round – with BetWay offering odds on the champion to force the issue before double-digit rounds at -900.
Placed as low as +400 to win on points against Benavidez over on BetWay – Plant’s most likely route to success comes via the judges it seems, with the 30-year-old sitting higher than the former throughout rounds one to 12 to force a stoppage in the action.