The biggest fight of the month turned out to be the best fight of the month. Opposites in terms of their approach to life and boxing. The duality of the two made for the interesting nature of the bout.

Benavidez is someone who is not as comfortable using his words as his fists, and Plant is someone who could serve as a motivational speaker, along with being a prizefighter. – Add to it, Benavidez is a great insider fighter, and Plant is a great outside fighter, with both having limitations with the other’s strength. 

The fight played out how many thought. Plant won the early rounds, but the steady pressure, size, and strength of Benavidez wore out Plant, who had to do a lot to do a little. Rounds ten and eleven were especially brutal, as they saw a one-sided affair that was marred by Plant’s holding which allowed him to finish the fight. The fight went from a competitive fight to one that probably took years off of Plant’s career as it became very one-sided in the last few rounds. 

When looking at the CompuBox numbers paints a clear picture. Looking at CompuBox, Benavidez landed 210 punches and threw 551 to Plant’s 91 landed blows out of 624 punches. The most telling was Benavidez landed 79 punches in rounds ten and eleven whereas Plant landed 14 in those rounds. That in numeric form explains what I saw.

The win now puts Benavidez in a position to challenge Canelo Alvarez, though we doubt that will happen next. If possible bring on David Morrell, one of the best super middleweights of the modern era, who could pose a real threat to David Benavidez.

Honorable Mentions

Antonio Mireles vs. Patrick Mailata – In a fight that went under the radar in Fresno, California, the two heavyweights beat up on each other. A stern test or a cautionary tale, but a great fight. 

Cody Crowley vs. Abel Ramos – An action-packed fight that saw both men unwilling to let there will be deterred. It has a case for being the best fight of the month, the thing that hurts it was simple – it just doesn’t matter as much in terms of the history of the sport. 

Christian MBilli vs. Carlos Gongora – Gongora is a professional test for any world-class fighter looking to challenge the top-five fighters in the super middleweight division. MBilli won but was dropped and had to gut out a win over a tough opponent. A fight that flew under the radar, but is worth a rematch. 

Demontaze Duncan vs Axl Melendez – A battle of two welterweight undefeated prospects that saw Axl Melendez edge a win over interesting U.S. prospects in a very close fight.