Benavidez chose Haney to beat Norman Jr., citing experience

David Benavidez picks Devin Haney to beat WBO champion Brian Norman Jr on November 22nd in Riyadh.

He says the “experience” Heaney (32-0, 16 KOs) has against “big fighters” will give him the edge he needs to defeat Norman Jr. (28-0, 22 KOs) at the ANB Arena in their co-fight.

“I think Devin Haney is going to win because of how much experience he has. He’s fought a lot of great fighters. I think he’s more than himself right now,” said David Benavidez. Champions ringsPick Devin Haney to defeat WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. on November 22nd.

Benavidez plays it safe

It must be hard for Benavidez. He shares the November 22 card with Hani, and the two are also scheduled to fight at the same event in early 2026 in Saudi Arabia. The last thing you want to do if you’re Benvidz is to downgrade Devin and create a toxic atmosphere with these two events.

PTSD conversation

It will be interesting to know what the ‘Mexican Monster’ Benavidez’s real opinions are about his chances against Norman Jr. The way Heaney ran around the ring in his last fight against Jose Ramirez has got to get his attention. How can you ignore it? Tim Bradley says he believes Haney is suffering from PTSD from his traumatic experience against Ryan Garcia in 2024.

“He’s able to utilize more of his strength, more of his conditioning, and more of his speed,” Benavidez said of Hani. “I didn’t really see Brian Norman. I saw that he knocked some guy (Gene Sasaki) out, the Japanese guy, but in terms of opponents, Devin Haney is miles ahead of him,” Benavidez said.

The threat of Norman’s power

Honey beat some good older fighters who were in the downs of their careers. It doesn’t matter what he’s done in the past, as he’s fighting at 147 against what many boxing fans consider to be the toughest puncher in the division. What Devin has done in the past won’t save him if he can’t handle Norman’s punching power.

“I don’t like how people underestimate Devin Honey because he has so many great fighters on his resume. A lot of great fighters. He’s had great fights, and he’s beaten them all. I don’t think it’s going to be easy,” Benavidez said of Honey’s win.

David is a bit over the top with his praise for Devin because he definitely lost to Ryan Garcia. Many fans believe he’s got a decision over Vasily Lomachenko in 2023, and he’s arguably the best fighter I’ve ever fought. He had a considerable size and youth advantage over Loma. It still wasn’t enough. The judges gave it to him, but it didn’t look like he won.

Written by Ken Woods, a ringside boxing analyst who has been covering world championship fights since 2018.