Benavidez vs. Yarde: How American David Benavidez went from a 260-pound kid to a world champion

At the age of 12, David Benavidez weighed 18 6 lb (117 kg).

When the American steps into the ring on Saturday against Briton Anthony Yarde as the defending WBC light heavyweight champion, he will be in 12th place at 7 pounds (79 kg).

Now 28 and a two-weight world champion, photos on social media of Benavidez training with his overweight 13-year-old father show just how far he has gotten into the shape needed to reach the top.

“At that time, I never imagined that I would be one of the best fighters and one of the biggest boxers today,” he told BBC Sport.

“I always believed in myself. I always knew that with hard work, anything is possible. I never gave up. I started out not in good shape.

“I had the will and dedication to get where I wanted to go. That’s the message I want to give to the kids.

“Other kids and other men can look at my story and take it into their lives and achieve anything.”

With his older brother Jose thriving in the amateur ranks, plans were made for Benavidez to lose 100 pounds.

By the time he was 15, he was competing with professionals such as world middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin.

“I had been boxing since I was three years old, and my father was training me,” the Phoenix-born fighter recalls.

“I really believe in myself. When I got back into boxing at the age of 11, we started moving little by little and dropping weight.

“When I lost the first 100 pounds, I was at 260 pounds and then it went down to 168 pounds. That’s when I realized I got the bulk of the way, now let’s keep training and see where it takes us.

“I wasn’t thinking about becoming a world champion, I worked hard every day. This is not a sprint. I like to think of it as a marathon.”