Former HBO commentator Jim Lampley believes former two-time super middleweight champion David Benavidez punches as hard as former heavyweight champions Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson. Somebody cut this man off.
Lampley feels Benavidez hits as hard as them and thinks he’ll be the biggest economic entity if he moves up to heavyweight and becomes a successful contender. I think Lampley is dreaming about Benavidez having heavyweight power.
12 Rounds to KO Plant? Not Exactly a Tyson Impression
Considering that Benavidez had to go 12 rounds to knockout Caleb Plant, I’d say that Lampley is dreaming if he believes he’s got Lewis or Mike Tyson-like punching power.
Those guys would have destroyed Plant with a single punch if there were a working time machine that could take Caleb back to the 1990s.
Benavidez scores his knockouts with his high volume and combination punching. He’s not a one-punch type of guy like Lewis, Tyson, Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder.
Canelo vs. Benavidez: Power vs. Pretty Boy?
“Most people that follow boxing don’t think Canelo is risking anything against Jaime Munguia because they don’t believe Munguia is skilled enough to find him often enough to get that one,” said Jim Lampley to Fight Hub TV.
“They do believe Benavidez is skilled enough to find him, and if Benavidez were able to go in the ring with Canelo and find him that chin might not matter because Benavidez has epic power,” said Lampley.
I hate to drizzle on Lampley’s vision, but Benavidez would be the weaker puncher of the two if he fought the smaller 5’8″ Canelo. Benavidez wasn’t blessed with power the way Canelo was, and it’s too late now for him to suddenly develop it.
Benavidez is moving up to light heavyweight next in June against former WBC champ Oleksandr Gvozdyk. If he has the kind of power that Lampley says he does, he should have no problems knocking out Gvozdyk.
“He has the kind of power where you go to sleep at night thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m not sure where I’ve seen that before.’ He detonated Demetrius Andrade and blew him up. I thought Andrade, because of his craft, was more or less knockout-proof,” said Lampley.
“So, I walked out of the arena that night thinking, ‘Where have I seen the kind of explosive power that David Benavidez just showed me?’ Lennox Lewis, Mike Tyson. Those are the kinds of fighters that demonstrated that kind of power.”
The way that Lampley raves about Benavidez’s power is like getting worked up because he can put out a candle.
Heavyweight Dreams: More Like Delusions
“By the way, I think there’s a strong chance that Benavidez will eventually in his career that he’ll fight at heavyweight and become the first serious and great heavyweight contender among Mexican American,” said Lampley.
“The first Mexican American serious heavyweight contender will be the biggest entity in boxing, and that possibility presents itself for Benavidez if he steers his career the right way,” said Lampley.
I think Lampley needs to take a long vacation to clear his head. If Benavidez suddenly starts knocking out guys with single shots like Lewis and Tyson did during their prime, comparing him to them is bizarre.
