We can only hope Benn remembers those sensible statements if the favored Garcia indeed defeats him in their WBC welterweight title bout at T-Mobile Arena. More than anything, Benn should remain mindful that he doesn’t even deserve a title shot in the 147-pound division because the British challenger hasn’t competed within it in almost 4½ years.

And when Benn did win welterweight fights from 2020-22, it wasn’t as if he defeated top 15 contenders and legitimized himself as a championship challenger.

He was awarded the top spot in the WBC’s welterweight rankings and eventually his first shot at a world title because he assured the sanctioning organization’s president, Mauricio Sulaiman, that he would work his way back down from middleweight after back-to-back bouts against rival Chris Eubank Jr.

Sulaiman accommodated Benn because he knew the WBC could do bigger business with the emerging British star than most actual welterweights in its rankings. The same manipulated math applied when the WBC gave Garcia his own undeserved shot at this very same welterweight crown six months ago.

Garcia, you’ll remember, lost his previous fight to huge underdog Rolly Romero before he beat Mario Barrios by unanimous decision to win it February 21 at T-Mobile Arena.

Nonetheless, Benn (25-1, 14 KOs) wasn’t forced into taking this fight. He and his team pursued it because Zuffa Boxing needed to justify its huge investment in him by matching him against a high-profile opponent, preferably in the United States.

Benn, 29, always wanted to win a WBC belt as well because his father, British legend Nigel Benn, held its super middleweight title from 1992-96.

Despite the conflicting interests of Zuffa Boxing and the WBC, Benn got what he wanted. While detailing the torturous nature of squeezing back down to 147 one last time, Benn seemed to understand he must accept the consequences of that pursuit during a recent interview with Ring colleague Mike Coppinger.

“It’s hard,” Benn said. “It’s brutal, but we’re getting it done. I ain’t gonna be complaining and moaning. I know what I signed up for. You’re not gonna see me posting no posts for sympathy in sweatsuits or crying. I’m getting paid handsomely. I’m fighting for the world title and headlining in a mega-fight in Las Vegas. … Yes, the weight’s going to be hard. Yes, it’s taking a piece out of my spirit and my soul to get down in weight. Yes, it’s excruciating, but it’s part of the job.”

Benn blasted Eubank for blaming his one-sided defeat in their 12-round rematch on depleting himself while dropping down to the middleweight limit of 160. Benn felt completely comfortable boxing at middleweight and intends to move back up to at least to 160 even if he upsets Garcia (25-2, 20 KOs).

Regardless, Benn experienced an opponent attempting to diminish a win, despite that Eubank embraced the troublesome weight cut because he got the fight and the payday he wanted. Garcia suspects Benn will take a comparable approach if he loses their fight.

“He’s setting up excuses, as you heard. ‘I’m going to 168,’ ” Garcia said during their final press conference Thursday at T-Mobile. “Motherf*****, this is a title shot at 147. The f*** you talking about? And let me let him in on a little secret — even if he makes the weight, your brain can’t rehydrate fast enough. Them punches gonna do some real damage.”

Benn made the weight Friday, as he has done for each of his first 26 professional fights, to get the title shot he sought. He shouldn’t complain about what was required to fight for it if he fails to capitalize on a chance he doesn’t deserve.

■ The audience the Garcia-Benn card draws in the United States will be Zuffa Boxing’s first true gauge of the impact it has made within the industry since it started streaming fights to Paramount+ subscribers in January. Not only is it the caliber of card that ordinarily would be televised via pay-per-view, it will also take place on a Saturday night. Seven of Zuffa’s first eight events in the U.S. have been streamed on Sunday nights, sometimes to avoid scheduling conflicts with UFC cards. It’s difficult to attract respectable boxing viewership on Sunday nights, but if enough viewers tune in to watch Garcia-Benn it could encourage Paramount Skydance executives to schedule more boxing on Saturdays.

■ It isn’t often NFL franchises can learn from boxers, but the Los Angeles Rams should’ve known better than to leave the United States so late for their season-opening game against San Francisco on Friday morning in Melbourne, Australia. American boxers typically travel to Australia at least a couple weeks in advance of fights there to allow their bodies time to acclimate to the time change. The 49ers arrived in Melbourne a full week in advance of their 27-7 victory, whereas the Rams landed there approximately 28 hours before kickoff.

■ For those who weren’t counting at home, 23 seconds elapsed from the time Damian Knyba knocked Andy Ruiz to the canvas late in the seventh round to when referee David Franciosi commanded them to continue fighting a week ago at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The additional time Franciosi afforded Ruiz to recover helped the former unified heavyweight champ make it to the eighth round and could’ve proved very costly to Knyba. The Polish contender clearly beat Ruiz in their 12-round bout, but that knockdown was the only reason Knyba didn’t settle for a majority draw in a fight he should’ve won by seventh-round TKO. Judges Glenn Feldman and Kevin Morgan scored Knyba a one-point winner, 114-113 apiece. Judge Tony Lundy’s 117-110 score was much more reflective of the convincing victory Knyba deserved.