GRADES: DAVID BENAVIDEZ, CALEB PLANT, LAWRENCE OKOLIE, JOSE RAMIREZ & MORE

By: Jay Calderon

We had a very busy weekend of boxing to say the very least. Naturally, that means I won't be able to cover every single fighter. However, I will do my best to point out the best (and worst) of the week for sure. 

First, we had Christian Mbilli survive a real test on Thursday in Canada, followed by David Benavidez earning the nod over Caleb Plant in Las Vegas on Saturday.

Also on Saturday, in Manchester, Lawrence Okolie successfully defended his Cruiserweight gold against David Light. And in Fresno, California, Jose Ramirez beat fellow former titlist Richard Commey by stoppage.

So, without much more rambling, let's hand out these grades.

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CHRISTIAN MBILLI: B+
RESULT: DEF. CARLOS GONGORA, 10UD (SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT)

In many respects, Christian Mbilli was in the exact sort of fight we needed to see him in on Thursday night in Canada.

Against Carlos Gongora, Mbilli was hurt, had to dig deep, and showed wrinkles to his game. In a way, Mbilli was put through the sort of test we want top ten fighters to be put through on their way to more meaningful fights. It's the only way to see if they can successfully make those bigger moves at the highest level.

For the most part, we saw some good things. Mbilli had moments where he could have panicked, where he could have exposed a major weakness to his game. In the second round, he was stunned and nearly went down. Yet, he found a way to survive, and continued to press forward.

Overall, he showed an ability to adapt, forcing himself to be busier down the stretch. Mbilli even showed some power late in the contest when he was tired, a good sign in a sense.

The issue, one might argue, is that you hope this isn't a sense of what's to come. The top of 168 pounds has some real weapons, and Mbilli will simply need to be better than he was against Gongora.

True, he might fight with a different game plan against David Morrell or the David Benavidez-Caleb Plant winner. But off the back of the Gongora fight, he's not likely the favorite in any of those potential contests.

LAWRENCE OKOLIE: C+
RESULT: DEF. DAVID LIGHT, 12UD (CRUISERWEIGHT)

The problem with Lawrence Okolie's win over mandatory challenger David Light is simple: It was exactly what you expected...and not a single bit more.

There's nothing wrong with making your night easy by boxing within yourself, limiting your mistakes and giving your man few chances in the fight. That being said, there's nothing special about it, either.

You should be able to control Light. He, with all due respect to the Aussie, was a large underdog, a no-hoper in most people's minds. Winning a comfortable decision should be the bare minimum.

What you expect someone with Okolie's power and dimensions to do to a fighter like Light is get rid of them -- or, do everything in their power to try and get rid of them.

If you watched the first round of Okolie-Light, you watched every round of Okolie-Light. Okolie didn't get out of second gear, and Light never gave him reason to do so.

Okolie can beat most 200 pounders fighting that way. But, with his (re)debut on Sky Sports, you would hope he was looking to shine. Instead, he did just enough and kept it moving.

It's not the worst performance in the world, but it left much to be desired.

JOSE RAMIREZ: B+
RESULT: DEF. RICHARD COMMEY, 11KO (JR. WELTERWEIGHT)

Jose Ramirez had a decent night at the office, doing hwat he had to do against a faded Richard Commey on Saturday in Fresno, California.

Was it perfect? No, but it really didn't have to be. He just had to look like a serious contender at 140 pounds. More or less, he accomplished that goal.

Ramirez showed he still has that fight in him, didn't take too many unnecessary shots and was able to close out the show. In truth, it was the best performance Ramirez has put forth since his stoppage win over Maurice Hooker back in July of 2019.

That said, you still have to question whether it's enough of a showing to prove he can handle some of the top level talent at Jr. Welterweight. Does that prove he handles Regis Prograis? Subriel Matias? That's tough to say.

At the very least, it proves he can hang. For a few fights now, that has been a question with Ramirez not looking his best. The only question now is whether or not he can stick around at 140 pounds for much longer.

RICHARD COMMEY: C-
RESULT: LOSS TO RICHARD COMMEY, 11KO (JR. WELTERWEIGHT)

I'm not the sort of fight fan that holds "quitting" against a fighter. Unless you know what it's like to be that fighter on that night, with that opponent in front of you, I just don't feel it's your place to judge.

That being said, I must admit it was tough seeing Richard Commey, a very tough and proud fighter, finally succumb to the onslaught of Jose Ramirez in Fresno. Not because Richard should be ashamed, simply because it might mean the fighter he once was no longer exists in any form.

Sure,it was easy to see his overall skills had been eroding, and his power wasn't what it once was at 135 pounds. But now, after a string of tough fights, Commey is finally starting to realize he doesn't have enough left at the top level of the sport.

Yes, Commey quit. When you get up literally the second after the ten count ends, that's you deciding to cease fighting. However, Commey didn't "quit" because he's not tough enough to continue. He forced himself to stay down despite being tough enough to go on. Because Richard knew it was a lost cause.

I can't bring myself to give him much less than around a C, because he showed up and he fought. Richard fought until it didn't make any sense to fight anymore.

DAVID BENAVIDEZ: A-
RESULT: DEF. CALEB PLANT, 12UD (SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT)

David Benavidez, in a lot of ways, showed some of his flaws against Caleb Plant in Las Vegas. He can be tamed early on if his opponent has a solid jab, and his vaunted combination lunching can be limited with proper movement and inside strength.

Having said that, there was no reason to expect Benavidez to look the same as he has in recent outings. Caleb Plant represented a major step up in class compared to almost all of David's previous opposition.

Still, we saw some very positive things come out for Benavidez in the process. Would he have loved to take Plant out, especially in dominant fashion? Sure. But we saw Benavidez settle into a fight, come from behind and solves problems mid-fight. Those are skills you need as the comp gets tougher.

Against the likes of Canelo Alvarez -- and, let's not kid ourselves, that's what Benavidez hopes this win will lead to in the future -- Benavidez will need to have different plans, possible adjustments. Simply coming forward and throwing won't be enough.

Against Plant, perhaps for the first time against a decent fighter, Benavidez showed he might can be more than just the pressure fighter his fast hands.

CALEB PLANT: B-
RESULT: LOSS TO DAVID BENAVIDEZ, 12UD (SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT)

For Caleb Plant, he really had a fight of two halves against David Benavidez.

In the first half of the contest, Plant showed once again that he can have elite moments against the top level fighters at Super Middleweight. His boxing ability and overall movement can win him rounds in those fights against the very best. What he failed to show is his ability to win those fights.

Plant doesn't have the power to stop most of the better fighters at 168 pounds, so he has to move and look for openings. Problematically, he doesn't have the engine to keep moving for all twelve rounds against those same fighters.

In the second half of the fight, Plant showed he is a tough bastard, willing to fight his way through adversity. He did whatever it took to make it to that final bell. And, by holding or making it messy overall, he did see the end of the fight.

Still, that isn't a trait you want to show off too many times. Hopefully for his sake, Plant can regroup and have another run near the top of Super Middleweight.

OTHER GRADES:
JOSE RAMOS: A-
RESULT: DEF. JOEY SPENCER, 7TKO (JR. MIDDLEWEIGHT)
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CHRIS COLBERT: D
RESULT: DEF. JOSE VALENZUELA, 10UD (LIGHTWEIGHT)
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JOSE VALENZUELA: C+
RESULT: LOSS TO CHRIS COLBERT, 10UD (LIGHTWEIGHT)

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