David Benavidez realizes just how dangerous Anthony Yarde will be when they square off November 22.

The unbeaten WBC light heavyweight champion has paid close attention to the dangerous English contender for several years. Benavidez is well aware therefore that he can’t afford to underestimate an opponent that could sabotage the legacy-strengthening fights he wants after defeating Yarde in the 12-round main event of “The Ring IV: Night of the Champions” card at ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

If Yarde and his trainer, Tunde Ajayi, truly believe Benavidez is “overlooking” him, the heavily favored Benavidez assured them that Yarde will encounter a harsh reality come fight night.

“They can say whatever they want, but they’re not seeing how I’m training,” Benavidez told The Ring. “If anything, this has been the hardest I’ve trained. They’re probably saying that because I’m mentioning Dmitry Bivol, I’m mentioning ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez. But at the end of the day, I know what’s at stake.”

A costly loss to Yarde (27-3, 24 KOs), The Ring’s fourth-ranked contender for Bivol’s belt, would knock the second-rated Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) off his path toward becoming boxing’s undisputed light heavyweight champion.

If Bivol (24-1, 12 KOs), the fully unified 175-pound champion, won’t provide Benavidez with that opportunity in his first fight of 2026, the Phoenix native will seriously consider moving up to challenge WBA/WBO cruiserweight champ Gilberto Ramirez. Benavidez could become a champion in a third weight class if he defeated Ramirez (48-1, 30 KOs).

While Benavidez is 28, in the heart of his physical prime and perfectly positioned to make his championship dreams come true, the 34-year-old Yarde understands that his third chance to win a light heavyweight title would likely be his last if he doesn’t beat Benavidez. Such desperation might make Yarde even more dangerous than he was when Sergey Kovalev beat him by 11th-round technical knockout in August 2019 and Artur Beterbiev stopped him in the eighth round in January 2023.

Yarde hurt Kovalev and buzzed Beterbiev in those bouts before they came back to take him out.

“I know he’s a great fighter,” Benavidez said. “I’ve been watching him for a long time. I knew a fight with Anthony Yarde was gonna manifest itself a long time ago. So, they can think whatever they want. You know what I mean? They can say [I’m overlooking him], but at the end of the day, the type of working I’m putting in says something way different.”

Ajayi informed The Ring this month that he sensed Benavidez is underestimating what Ajayi promised will be “the fight of his life.”

“I just think whenever somebody is already talking about another fight in the future, then they are overlooking the one in front of them,” Ajayi said. “So, yeah, keep overlooking us. He’s talking about [Dmitry] Bivol and [Artur] Beterbiev and I’m like, ‘Are you having a laugh mate?’ Do you think we are coming here to mess about? We are coming here to fight, and David Benavidez is going to be in the fight of his life.”

Benavidez is a 10-1 favorite over Yarde according to DraftKings in the headliner of DAZN Pay-Per-View’s four-fight show ($59.99 in the United States; £24.99 in the UK).