Peter Dobson didn’t seem like the same brash antagonist in person Tuesday that Conor Benn knew from social media.

Benn came away from their face-to-face interactions certain that “a scared” Dobson doesn’t believe all of the things the unknown underdog has stated throughout the buildup toward their 12-round, 151-pound fight Saturday in Las Vegas. England’s Benn contends that a disingenuous Dobson is starved for attention and is simply attempting to hype up their bout by masking his insecurities through trash talk.

That will cost Dobson, according to Benn, during a main event DAZN will stream from The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

“He has to hype the fight, but then again, it comes at a price,” Benn told BoxingScene.com. “And the price is his health on Saturday, so I hope it’s worth it for him.”

Dobson (16-0, 9 KOs), a Hackensack, New Jersey resident who was raised in the Bronx, New York, has labeled Benn “a bum” and “a one-trick pony,” among other things, since their fight was announced late in December. Benn noticed nervous energy from Dobson when they were together Tuesday to promote the card they’ll headline.

“Social media’s a funny thing because he was talking a lot of ish on social media, and then when I see him face-to-face not a word was said,” Benn said. “And then we got in the car to go to the other face-off [outdoors], and I know he was sent a text message to hype it up. And then he started talking, so you know, at least stand on what you’re saying, you know? But it was a different energy in person. Social media’s a funny thing, man.”

Benn (22-0, 14 KOs) is listed by most sportsbooks as at least a 10-1 favorite to beat Dobson, largely because the 33-year-old Dobson will take a step up in competition against a son of one of the most legendary fighters in British boxing history. Ilford’s Benn will fight for the second time since his performance-enhancing drug ordeal caused an abrupt cancellation of his middleweight fight against English rival Chris Eubank Jr. in October 2022 at O2 Arena in London.

The British Boxing Board of Control still hasn’t licensed Benn in the United Kingdom, thus his last two fights have been scheduled to take place in the United States. Benn beat Rodolfo Orozco (32-4-3, 24 KOs) by unanimous decision in his last fight, a 10-rounder September 23 at Caribe Royale Orlando in Orlando, Florida.

Though this is considered another tune-up fight for Benn, the 27-year-old contender considers this a dangerous assignment because it could prohibit him from landing the type of higher-profile fight he wants sometime in the summer.

“I don’t even look at it like that,” Benn said. “Listen, he’s got two arms, two legs, and when I say he can punch, I don’t mean necessarily hard. But he’s got two arms, two legs, a head and he throws punches. So, you know, I always prepare for any man as if it’s my world title fight, because it’s these sort of fights that you overlook that can cause mega-upsets. It’s just, you know, a historic thing in boxing, where fighters take their eye off the ball and, you know, become unstuck.”

DAZN’s preliminary undercard coverage of the Benn-Dobson show is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. PT (2 p.m. ET; 7 p.m. GMT). The bout between Benn and Dobson is expected to start at 2:30 p.m. PT in Las Vegas, when it’s 10:30 p.m. GMT, to accommodate Benn’s British fans in his home country.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.