Is David Benavidez The Key Player at Super Middleweight?

Could Plant be a Problem for Benavidez?

Whatever happens in the next several months, Benavidez is still going to be in a pretty good position. First of all, Plant is a perfect opponent for him right now. It will show Benavidez and his team where he stands in comparison to Alvarez. “Sweet hands” had a really good performance against veteran Antony Direll, knocking him out with a perfect left hook. Plant looked great in that fight, showing his trademark combinations and hand speed, but Benavidez’s reach and power could be a big problem for him.

Alvarez is a much bigger obstacle to cross, but not an impossible one, judging from what we saw in his fights with Golovkin and Bivol. Alvarez looked tired and slow as early as round four, which is something that he can’t allow to happen against “El Bandera Roja”.

What if the Alvarez Fight Doesn’t Happen?

If this fight does not materialize, Benavidez has other options at super middleweight. David Morell and Edgar Barlanga would make for a thrilling matchup. Besides Alvarez, Morell is a boxer that could give some problems to Benavidez.

Morell is tall, with good technique and hand speed, he also moves very well and has decent head movement. The Cuban fighter showed much potential in his latest fight against Aidos Yerbossynuly. On the other hand, he’s only eight fights into his professional career, and he never faced a boxer like Benavidez before. Barlanga is a great puncher, but he struggled against boxers like Steve Rolls and Roamer Alexis Angulo who are far away from all above-mentioned super middleweights.

Other top-ten fighters in this division, boxers like Danny Jacobs and Billy Joe Saunders, are on the downside of their careers, with their best years behind them. These fights would, probably, attract a lot of fans and bring good money, but they wouldn’t matter much for Benavidez’s resume. Another year, or two, should be enough time to see who the best super middleweight in the world is.

A Step Up in Weight?

We could even go one step forward and say that from of all the super middleweight boxers right now, Benavidez could be the one to challenge the light heavyweight champions Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev. He would be the underdog, of course, but Benavidez is the only one right now who has that blend of skills, guts and toughness to at least give them a good fight.

First of all, he is a natural light heavyweight, with 6’1 and a 75-inch reach. Alvarez vs. Bivol fight is a good example that you need to match these guys both physically and technically. One thing that could sabotage Benavidez on his road to greatness is focus. He already showed some discipline problems with missing weight and using recreational drugs. At only 21 years of age there is a lot of time and space to improve.

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