Anthony Yarde’s trainer, Tunde Ajayi, doesn’t believe David Benavidez’s absence of knockouts since moving up to 175 is a signal that he can’t punch in the light heavyweight division. He notes that he’s now facing better opposition than the guys he fought at 168.
Benavidez’s Last Seven Knockouts
– David Lemiueux
– Demetrius Andrade: 35 and past his prime
– Kyrone Davis
– Ronald Ellis
– Roamer Alexis Angulo
– Anthony Dirrell
– J’Leon Love
That’s NOT an impressive list. Most of those guys were journeymen, and the only two ex-world champions, Dirrell and Andrade, were old in their mid-30s when Benavidez fought them.
Yarde (27-3, 24 KOs) will challenge Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) for his WBC light heavyweight title on November 22nd at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The fight will be shown live on DAZN PPV.
Benavidez Knockout Drought
“Not really because when we look at the knockout ratios of particular people, knockouts are determined by who is standing in front of you,” said Tunde Ajayi to Pro Boxing Fans, when asked if David Benavidez’s lack of knockouts since moving up to 175 is a sign that his power hasn’t carried up from 168.
It’s obvious that Benavidez’s power hasn’t carried over from 168. His absence of knockouts in his two fights at light heavyweight against Oleksandr Gvozdyk and David Morrell wasn’t only because he was finally facing talented guys. His power isn’t the same at 175 as it had been when he fought at 168.
“If you look at Deontay Wilder, he couldn’t knock out Tyson Fury, yet he had a higher knockout percentage than Tyson. The track record of both athletes [Yarde and Benavidez] is high,” said Tunde.
Ajayi: High IQ Fight
“Anthony’s fight against Beterbiev was the hardest fight Beterbiev ever had. That world showed the boxing world Yarde’s great IQ. David Benavidez said during the face-to-face that neither of these punchers are the type that go in and knock a person out. They both have high IQs, and that’s why they’re both at this level,” said Ajayi.
Yarde did a remarkable job against Artur Beterbiev. If he hadn’t tired out, he likely would have knocked him out because he had him hurt on a couple of occasions with his left hook.
Benavidez’s habit of crowding his opponents, focusing on volume, will leave him open to Yarde’s left hooks. If the ‘Mexican Monster’ chooses to use that approach, he’s going to get clipped. Recovering from a knockdown against Yarde will be more difficult than it was when he fought David Morrell last February. Yarde will pounce on him right away, looking to finish him. Morrell backed off after dropping Benavidez, and surprisingly shelled up against the ropes. It was weird.
Last Updated on 07/30/2025
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