Key Fight Facts:
- In the annual Cinco de Mayo weekend, David Benavidez won the WBO and WBA World Cruiserweight titles by defeating Gilberto Ramirez by sixth-round TKO
- Benavidez had too much speed, power, and stamina for Ramirez, who damaged his face as it getting medical attention
- Benavidez taunted Canelo Alvarez about fighting next, but the real target has always been Dmitriy Bivol for
The boxing world has been looking for its next great Mexican star, the athlete who could carry the annual Cinco de Mayo fight card, one of the biggest on the boxing calendar all year.
For many years, fans counted on multi-division superstar Canelo Alvarez. But his days ahead grow short, and injuries plus big Saudi paychecks made a search necessary.
The search might be over as of Saturday night, after David Benavidez crushed Gilberto Ramirez in spectacular style to win the WBO and WBA World Cruiserweight titles with a destructive sixth-round knockout victory.
Benavidez of Phoenix (32-0, 26 KOs) lived up to the moniker given to him by Mike Tyson, “The Monster,” as he took Ramirez of Mazatlán, Mexico (48-1, 30 KOs), apart piece by piece until Ramirez was too damaged to continue.
It was fitting that Tyson, along with Ryan Garcia, joined Benavidez in the ringwalk, holding his previous championship belts. Asked what a win would mean for Benavidez, Tyson said, “Immortality, man!”
Maybe it’s a little premature, but things are looking as good as they possibly could for Benavidez.
Benavidez began with sharp jabs and added body punches and hooks to both sides of the head in combination. Benavidez puts combinations together with breathtaking speed like much smaller fighters with fast hands like Manny Pacquiao.
But when Benavidez throws his punches, they do serious damage. Four rounds into the fight, Ramirez was still coming forward to trade with Benavidez, but he was much slower and was taking many more shots than Benavidez. In the fourth round, with his face already a bright crimson red and swelling, Ramirez chose to take a knee to stop Benavidez from pounding him.
Ramirez rallied with what he had left. The end came in the sixth round in a replay, with Ramirez taking a knee. The second time, Ramirez took a punch to the left side of the face against his swelling right eye, and he grimaced in pain, holding his face. He backpedaled to get away from Benavidez, and referee Thomas Taylor quickly assessed the situation and stopped the fight at 2:59 of round six. It seems likely Ramirez has a broken orbital bone, and he was transported to a local hospital immediately after the fight.
Benavidez celebrated with his fans at the T-Mobile Arena, telling them, “I love every single one of you. I’m very happy. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who came out to support me. You guys are my engine to my motivation, so thank you so much.”
The Benavidez Game Plan
Benavidez said he knew he couldn’t overpower the bigger Ramirez, especially in his first time fighting in the cruiserweight division. “So I knew I had to use the gifts that God gave me: speed, power, movement, punch selection and IQ. That’s exactly what I did.”
“I knew the combinations were going to be able to land easy. My combination punch selection is unlike anything. I don’t care who it is, man. Nobody can fuck with me.”
Where there was joy on one side of the ring, there was physically and emotional pain on the other as Zurdo held his battered face with his head in his hands, as an ice pack was applied.
Benavidez embraced his former sparring partner and thanked his team.
“I just wanted to give him thanks for the opportunity. I love Zurdo Ramirez. You know, we came up together. We came up sparring together. I got him ready for his world championship fights. He got me ready for my world championship fights.
“So, I just want to say I love Zurdo Ramirez, but, you know, it is what it is in here. There’s only one Monster. ”
Does the Future for David Benavidez Include Canelo Alvarez?
With the victory, Benavidez has options. Asked about what might lie ahead for him, Benavidez couldn’t ignore the presence of Alvarez ringside on Saturday.
“I feel good, man. I just want to give the fans what they want to see. I see Canelo is in the building. Let me just ask the fans this. Do you guys want to see Canelo versus David Benavidez?”
The fan response was swift and loud. “Enough said. That means we can’t leave that fight on the table. I have respect for Canelo. He’s a great champion. I’m a great champion, too. Let’s do it,” said Benavidez.
“I’m still champion at 175. I’m champion at 175 and 200. So, if they want to come get it at 175, let’s get it at 175.”
But Benavidez has made no secret for a long time exactly who he wants to fight, and there is just one night at the top: unified world light heavyweight champion Dmitriy Bivol. Bivol is among the few people who handed Canelo Alvarez a loss.
“Bivol is the number one on my hit list. He’s a great competitor, great champion, but I’m a good champion, too. I just want to test myself every single fight,” said Benavidez.
Bivol is returning in a warm-up fight after back surgery last year on May 30 in Russia. Assuming it goes well, expect serious talks to begin about Bivol vs Benavidez.
No one believes Benavidez and Canelo will face each other. Taunting aside, Benavidez has said openly that Bivol is the only light heavyweight that interests him. Canelo is still fighting at super middleweight with no desire to move up, and making 168 pounds is well in David Benavidez’ rear-view mirror.
Canelo will announce his next fight with title holder Christian Mbilli at the May 23 fight in Giza, Egypt as part of a larger Ring Magazine card to be named in coming days..
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist with more than four dozen awards for both written and video coverage from the Boxing Writers Association of America, Society of Professional Journalists, and San Diego Press Club, where she is the past president. She is the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the BWAA. She is the Boxing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.