Jose Benavidez Sr. believes his son Jose Jr. needs to score a statement win or deliver an impressive performance in order to keep his career on the right track.

The former world title challenger Benavidez Jr. (27-1-1, 18 KOs) will take on former two-division champion Danny Garcia (36-3, 21 KOs) in a super welterweight fight on July 30 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn headlining a card on Showtime.

“It's a 50/50 fight. Whoever wants it more is going to win. We're trying to do the best that we can to be there 100%. It's going to be a good fight,” Benavidez Sr. told BoxingScene.com in an interview. 

Benavidez Sr. is also the head trainer for his son. 

“He's motivated now that he has two daughters. This is it. This is a big test for him to prove to us that he's ready and still belongs. He has to look impressive in order to keep getting fights. If not, that will be the end of his career. I think he's going to start thinking about hanging the gloves if he doesn't do well,” said Benavidez Sr. 

Benavidez’s career has derailed ever since being shot in the leg in 2016. After recovering and scoring two wins in tuneup fights in 2018, the 30-year-old challenged Terence Crawford for a welterweight title and suffered a 12th-round TKO loss.

After a three-year break, Benavidez returned last October and made his 154-pound debut and looked lackluster against Argentinian journeyman Francisco Torres. The 10-round bout ended in a majority draw. 

“To be honest with you, as a father, I want the best for him and I try to help as much as I can, but at the end of the day, he has to want it. He's good, otherwise, I wouldn't even try to get him a fight,” said Benavidez Sr.

“He's motivated, and it's a good chance for him to prove himself and show the people that he's back. I want to see if he still has it. He's only 30 years old. We will see with this fight where he's at.

“It's just the distractions and discipline that he had. He has to want it more than I do.”

Benavidez, the older brother of super middleweight knockout artist David Benavidez, will have a 2 ½ height and reach advantage to use against Garcia, who hasn’t fought since dropping a decision to Errol Spence Jr. in Dec. 2020.

Garcia will be making his 154-pound debut in the fight. 

“[Jose is] strong at 154 pounds. I can tell you all of these things, but we'll see the day of the fight,” said Benavidez Sr. “I'm so anxious too to see how he responds. It's time to show up. Then we'll look for bigger fights and challenges if he beats Garcia.”

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or on www.ManoukAkopyan.com.