Battle of the Beasts: Benavidez v Yarde Preview and Prediction

David Benavidez (1.11) v Anthony Yarde (6.50) (WBC Light Heavyweight Championship)

When: Sunday, November 23, 3:30 AM SAST

It’s the title-holding “Monster Bandera Roja” against “The Beast of the East”. Two marauders with serious knockout credentials and bad intentions, this promises to be an explosive battle.

The champion is an undefeated destroyer so feared that not even the great Canelo Alvarez wanted any part of him. As a result, the former two-time WBC super middleweight champion moved up to light heavyweight and captured the vacant WBC belt with a decision win over Oleksandr Gvozdyk last June.

The Mexican-American outpointed David Morrell to retain the title in February and improve to 30-0, and was elevated to full champion when then-undisputed champion Dmitry Bivol fought Artur Beterbiev for a third time rather than fulfil the WBC’s request to defend the championship against the interim titleholder.

Benavidez is a predator who goes for the kill every time he steps inside the squared circle. He’s a melter of men, who ruthlessly breaks down opponents with a non-stop barrage of educated strikes, a debilitating cocktail that’s earned him 24 wins by knockout (80%).

Yarde is 27-3 and has an even higher knockout ratio at 89%. Six of the heavy-handed and aggressive British powerhouse’s first 10 fights ended in the first round and three in the second.

For the 34-year-old, it could be third time’s the charm. It might also be his last chance to become a world champion after coming up short in his first two title bouts.

He was 18-0 when he suffered his first loss when he challenged Sergey Kovalev for the WBO light heavyweight title in 2019 and was knocked out by Beterbiev in their 2023 meeting for the WBC, IBF and WBO titles.

Despite going down, Yarde’s stock went up for his courageous effort against the then-unbeaten Beterbiev, and four straight wins since then – the most recent of which being his decision victory over Lyndon Arthur in April – have him once again one step away from golden glory.

While Yarde has the edge in explosiveness, Benavidez’s relentless pressure, superior punch output, and ring IQ make him the overwhelming favourite. He’s also the younger man by six years and the bigger man, which will see him have a two-inch height and two-and-a-half-inch reach advantage.

Expect Benavidez to be wary of the challenger’s power early and pick up the action in the middle and later rounds to take control of the fight. A late stoppage is possible, but I see his decision streak continuing.  

Prediction: Benavidez by decision.

Best Bet: Benavidez by decision at 2.75.

Alternative Bet: Benavidez by KO/TKO/DQ at 1.66.