As both Caleb Plant and Anthony Dirrell continued their curse-filled war of words, David Benavidez became intrigued by their super middleweight showdown. Officially, the two entered the ring against one another this past weekend in the co-main event slot in Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.

Initially, the former two-time 168-pound belt holder had a hunch that despite Dirrell’s pedigree, Plant’s youth and overall boxing ability would lead him to a close but clear unanimous decision victory. Ultimately, while Plant had little to no trouble racking up the points, the one-time IBF super middleweight trinket holder violently and suddenly ended the night of his man in the ninth round.

Having watched Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) up close and personal for years on end, Benavidez admits that the 30-year-old has never impressed him with his power until that fateful Saturday night.

“I felt like it was a pretty good fight,” said Benavidez to krikya360.com. “There was a lot of back and forth. I’m really surprised by Anthony Dirrell. He seemed fast, he was landing some good shots. He was being caught by some good shots by Caleb Plant too but I’m really mostly surprised by the knockout. I didn’t think Caleb had it in him to pull out the knockout. There’s not too much fighters that can take a flush left hook on the chin like that.”

Although Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs) was taken aback, Plant’s highlight reel-worthy knockout only further his desire to face him in the ring. Nevertheless, before the two heated rivals attempt to hammer out a deal, Benavidez will first be asked to turn back the brazen challenge of former champion, Jose Uzcategui. The pair customarily have a deal in place to square off in the first quarter of 2023.

Should Benavidez take care of business, he maintains that Plant’s jaw-dropping stoppage win adds a bit of sizzle to their long-awaited showdown.

“Overall it was a good performance, it was a good fight. I feel like it adds more to our fight. Builds it up more so hopefully we get that fight in May.”