LOS ANGELES — David Benavidez hopes the promise he’s making in his upcoming fight against Caleb Plant gives him the extra oomph he may need to score a victory against his archrival. 

Benavidez and Plant will meet on March 25 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Showtime pay-per-view.

The matchup between the former super middleweight champions is years in the making. 

“I’m predicting a sixth-round knockout because I wanted to put a little bit more pressure on myself. When I put pressure on myself, the best comes out of me. I'm excited. I feel it. I feel that this is my moment,” Benavidez said in an interview with BoxingScene.com and other reporters. 

“I've been putting in work as a professional for 10 years. I've had bad things and good things happen to me. Everything has happened to me for a reason. I'm going to be the best David Benavidez on March 25.

“This is going to be the fight of the year and knockout of the year.”

Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs) and Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) met face-to-face at a media gathering on Feb. 2 to promote their fight.

During the buildup of his previous two fights, Plant got into a brawl with Canelo Alvarez during their kickoff press conference and a heated back-and-forth verbal battle with Anthony Dirrell the week of the fight.

Plant was more composed, tepid, and less confrontational with Benavidez. 

Benavidez deemed that as a sign of weakness. 

“He's scared. You can see it in his glassy eyes. He looked like he was about to cry,” said Benavidez. “He has scared energy. I know when someone is scared. I've been doing this long enough time. I beat the sh!t out of people, so I know when someone is scared. All that fake sh!t acting like he's tough, he's stone cold – I know a scared person when I see one. I know he's scared of me.”

Benavidez said that he will not let his disdain toward Plant get in the way of his ultimate goal come fight night. 

“This is what people want to see – two guys who really don't like each other go at it. It does motivate me. I'm a professional. I'm not going into the fight with a lot of emotions,” said Benavidez.

“Mentally, you have to put yourself in a situation to get the most out of it. I do not like this guy at all. I really want to put a beating on him, and I'm going to get to do it on the biggest stage possible. This is how it is. I am ready for anything, and whatever comes with it.”

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer, and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com, or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.