Anthony Yarde is one of the best possible opponents for David Benavidez at this stage of Benavidez’s career. The American debuted at light heavyweight in the summer of 2024 and has since faced Oleksandr Gvozdyk and David Morrell.

Both fights were excellent. The bout with Morrell was exciting and full of action. But stylistically, Yarde — with his willingness to attack, to answer punches with hard counters, and with his physical strength — is exactly what Benavidez needs right now.

Benavidez is a relentless offensive fighter. He applies nonstop pressure, throws an enormous number of punches, and works both head and body with fluid combinations. He is a serious problem for any opponent.

Yarde is not as technically refined as Morrell, but he has his own strengths. He is patient even under heavy pressure, he knows how to jump into exchanges, and while he is not a one-punch knockout artist, his power is real and impactful.

Additionally, Yarde has been in excellent form recently. Since 2023 he has fought four times, winning all four, two by stoppage.

At the same time, Benavidez has not yet scored a stoppage at light heavyweight. The question of whether his power truly carries up in weight remains open — he did not stop the aging Gvozdyk nor Morrell. He overwhelmed them with volume, pace, and pressure, but did not finish the job early.

Yarde will be another key piece of that puzzle. He will help determine whether Benavidez can break down bigger, stronger men in this division. Yarde has fought true elite names at 175: Sergey Kovalev in 2019, Artur Beterbiev in 2023, as well as Lyndon Arthur and others.

Benavidez is only 28 — six years younger than Yarde. Both have solid experience, but what matters most is not their total number of fights.

The key is that Benavidez is still a newcomer at light heavyweight and has not answered all the questions this division presents — especially whether he has the power to dominate and break elite, heavier opponents. He beat Gvozdyk and Morrell on work rate and pressure, but could not stop either man.

Yarde will help provide clarity. He is accustomed to fighting big punchers and elite champions at 175 pounds.

Statistics confirm that this fight is likely to be fast-paced.

Benavidez and Yarde throw almost the same number of punches on average. Benavidez has a slight edge in both output and accuracy.

The biggest difference is in power punching. Benavidez throws significantly more — around 310 power punches to Yarde’s 230 per fight. And despite the volume, he also maintains a small accuracy advantage: 27% vs 26%.

Benavidez’s activity at light heavyweight is not ideal — he debuted in 2024 and fought only once. But in 2025 both he and Yarde will enter the ring for the second time.

Both produced strong performances. Yarde defeated Lyndon Arthur in a tough, action-packed fight. Benavidez delivered one of the best fights of the year against David Morrell.

Both fighters have strong knockout percentages and both can punch. But neither is a pure one-shot knockout artist.

Benavidez breaks opponents down with volume, body-head combinations, and pressure. He rarely ends fights with a single concussive punch.

Yarde is athletic, strong, and heavy-handed, but also not a pure dynamite puncher.

This suggests that unless one of them lands a perfect shot early, we may see many heated exchanges.

Yes, Kovalev and Beterbiev stopped Yarde, but that does not mean he has a weak chin. He is generally resilient, willing to absorb shots, exchange, and work his way into his own offense.

Benavidez is not invincible either. Morrell landed shots that clearly affected him. But Benavidez’s strength is the ability to stay composed under fire, limit risks even while attacking, and avoid letting opponents truly test his chin.

Benavidez has boxed outside the United States several times — in Mexico. Yarde has competed abroad twice. Neither has ever fought in Saudi Arabia.

Acclimatization matters. Climate, time zone, and conditions have historically influenced fighters’ stamina and performance. For Benavidez, this will be an even bigger adjustment.

Benavidez enters as the favorite and the champion. Dmitry Bivol refused the fight, which helped Benavidez secure the title. He openly threatens Beterbiev, wants a long reign at 175, and needs scalps like Yarde on his résumé.

Yarde has faced elite fighters before, but never someone with such pace and volume. This could be decisive.

Yarde was never known for exceptional stamina. His fight with Beterbiev was competitive early but fell apart due to fatigue.

Yarde believes his power can make Benavidez hesitate, slow down, and stop marching forward. If that works, an upset is possible.

But if Benavidez drags him into deep rounds without losing sharpness, the problems will fall on Yarde.