In Los Angeles, two undefeated super middleweights met for the press conference to promote their upcoming Showtime pay-per-view as David “El Monstruo” Benavidez and Demetrius “Boo Boo” Andrade, set the stage for the November 25th battle. The fight is for Benavidez’s Interim WBC Super Middleweight Title as the two will fight at the Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada but in reality, a bigger prize looms for both.
The winner of this bout could be next in line for Canelo Alvarez, the undisputed super middleweight champion and cash cow of the division and possibly the sport of boxing as a whole.
“I’m not worried about Canelo Alvarez," said Benavidez at the press conference. "I’m worried about Demetrius Andrade. I definitely believe the winner of this fight is the best super middleweight in the world.
Benavidez, acknowledged the significance of this fight, as Andrade a two-division world champion and a 2008 U.S. Olympian has spent the majority of his career being avoided. Now Andrade is looking to prove his greatness, and Benavidez sees this as a chance to prove who is the top fighter in the super middleweight division. As Benavidez's prior pay-per-view bout against Caleb Plant was sold on a feud, this bout is sold more on legacy, and potentially the career arch for both fighters.
“Everything about Demetrius Andrade is different than Caleb Plant," said Benavidez. "His fighting style. He’s a lefty. His combination selection is different. It’s up to me to do the homework and see what I can learn from him off his previous fights and then put in the game plan. He’s a world-class fighter and he’s not going to give me an easy fight at all. He’s hungry for the fight so that’s going to make for a great fight and the fans are going to be the ones who win."
The father and trainer of David Benavidez held bold words at the press conference as despite being respectful, also stated he believes that he will stop Andrade as Benavidez Sr., gave an exact prediction.
“I think Andrade is a great fighter," stated Jose Benavidez Sr. "He’s a special fighter who is very dangerous. He’s a champion and an Olympian but I think David is going to stop him in the eighth round. We have to prove ourselves and David has to look spectacular to get the bigger fights. I think David is the best fighter at 168 pounds in the world.”
Benavidez is hearing the negative comments about him, and the backlash as some have questioned his resume. One of the key talking points coming out of the press conference is that Benavidez is taking this fight also to silence the doubters.
“I’m taking this challenge because I want to shut everybody’s mouth up," said Benavidez. "When great fighters get put in front of me, the best comes out of me and I become a great fighter myself."
This fight might not be for a Canelo fight, but it certainly feels as though the winner of this fight is in a great position to land a May fight with Canelo Alvarez. Given that both fighters have called for that bout in the past, this is the chance of a lifetime for both.
