When you go to a boxing card there is always more to be seen than just the main event. If you keep your eyes open you can sometimes be lucky enough to catch tomorrow’s next big star in the early stages of their career. While this Saturday’s Pinoy Power 3/Latin Fury card is noteworthy because of the talent and the likely competitiveness of the televised showcases, young 17 year old prospect Jose Benavidez will be fighting on the undercard and in just his second professional bout he seems to already be worth a look.
Moments ago inside the Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, Benavidez opened up about his early career just moments away from the weigh in for the Pinoy Power 3 event. Speaking candidly, Benavidez is at a point where there is no need for worries, as he is simply ready to fight.
“I’m fighting tomorrow and I’ve been training hard and working with Manny Pacquiao and Freddie Roach. It’s just been a good experience and I can’t wait for my fight.”
With Roach in his corner, Benavidez made his professional debut last month by blowing out overmatched Steven Cox in the first round at the Hard Rock Hotel. While that 81 second showcase seemed to come and go, Benavidez was still able to take away a taste of what it now means to be a professional
“It’s a different experience than the amateurs where you have bigger gloves and head gear,” Benavidez states. “In the pros it’s a different format and it’s way better than the amateurs. You can see way more without the head gear on you. My first fight I wasn’t too nervous because I had been through a lot of national tournaments and I was just ready to fight.”
Benavidez was raised in Phoenix, Arizona and remembers getting into boxing because his dad saw him watching the sport on T.V. and later took him to a gym. Benavidez fell in love with the sweet science and claims that some of his best memories were winning the National Golden Gloves at the age of sixteen.
Everything seemed to be in place for Benavidez to make a nice run as a professional but what would happen next was surprising. A random visit to California to look for some sparring ending up leading to a union with one of the top trainers in the world.
“After the Golden Gloves I went to California to look for some sparring and stuff,” Benavidez recalls. “Freddie saw me sparring with a guy and he told my Dad ‘Let’s work together, I really like how your son fights’. We went back home and we talked about it with Freddie. It just all started from there.”
Now training at the Wild Card Gym for his upcoming bouts, Benavidez finds himself in one of the world’s most famous gyms. Training in the facility is something he obviously hasn’t taken for granted so far.
“It’s crazy because that is one of the best places to be at right now. It’s a hot spot because you have all these different boxers from different countries in there. All these different boxers and just the sparring is outstanding. Just to be around Manny and watch him train has been a great thing.”
At only seventeen years of age you don’t want to say too much about Benavidez because he is still getting started in several regards. What it obvious is that he has everything in place to make a serious run in the sport and it should be interesting watching him develop over the next few years.
