NEW YORK, NY — Once Cinco de Mayo weekend was all about Canelo Alvarez, the Mexican boxing icon and undisputed super middleweight champion who could not be beat. Alvarez, though, is returning to the ring in September in an attempt to be the king again after being sidelined with elbow surgery and losing his belts to Terence “Bud” Crawford.
So on this Cinco de Mayo weekend in Las Vegas, MGM Grand Arena had a new king get crowned in David Benavidez. Benavidez proudly has the distinction as the new face of Mexico and perhaps the entire sport. It’s been an agenda of the Mexican-American’s, plowing through the competition with a power punch, which he did once again Saturday night while rising to the occasion.
David Benavidez rose to the occasion once again Saturday night in Las Vegas as it was the Mexican-American’s first time fighting on Cinco de Mayo Weekend – Image Credit: Golden Boy Promotions
Known as “El Monstro,” Benavidez unified the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles, dropping the champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramírez twice—the second time was at the 2:59 mark of the sixth round.
Historic and now, a three-division champion, holding the WBC light heavyweight title at the center of the ring as the fight card was streamed live on Prime PPV and PPV.com.
Indeed we can call Benavidez the face of boxing, becoming the first fighter ever to have titles at super middleweight, light heavyweight, and cruiserweight. Even Alvarez, who had avoided Benavidez when he had that distinction as the face has to admit that the torch has passed.
His first time at 200-pounds Saturday and Benavidez was everything of a monster with his punch and power.
“I knew I wasn’t going to be able to overpower him (Ramirez) because it was my first time coming up to 200lbs,” said Benavidez after the win. “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.”
The sky is the limit for David Benavidez who has shown to have all the tools needed to be the face of boxing – Image Credit: Golden Boy Promotions
And as Alvarez watched as an observer, despite not being at ringside, there is more of a possibility he will never get in the ring with Benavidez. Regardless of the new champion calling Alvarez out again.
For the last year as Benavidez continued to chase history, he always said that a fight with Alvarez was not on his radar—a clash that would have generated immense revenue and buzz in boxing circles as well as across all of Mexico.
Instead, Benavidez has options including, as he said, returning to defend the light heavyweight title and unification. It’s no secret that he handles weight well and would be eyeing Dmitry Bivol, the WBA, IBF, and WBO champion. He is loyal and no amount of money or offer will change his alliance from the PBC and Sampson Boxing who has been with Benavidez during his championship run.
Though there is Zuffa Boxing and Dana White with a lucrative Paramount+ streaming deal that may bank on him jumping ship. However the issue with Zuffa, continuing to sign prominent fighters, is not working with various sanctioning organizations, including the titles that Benavidez holds. With that said, he has never backed out of a challenge and wants more in his prime at the age of 29.
Benavidez (32-0, 26 KOs, Phoenix, Arizona) was simply splendid against a respected two-division world champion. After a strong first round where Benavidez flashed his trademark blinding combinations, he switched stances in the second and was no less effective. When Ramírez (48-2, 30 KOs, Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico) led, he was countered.
“I’m still champion at 175, I’m champion at 175 and 200,” said Benavidez. “So, if they want to come get it at 175, let’s get it at 175. 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.”
David Benavidez put on a historic performance Saturday evening at MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, knocking out Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramírez in the sixth round of their main event bout – Image Credit: Golden Boy Promotions
It was a historic performance to shape a new king and face or whatever it has to be called.
Jaime Munguía, A World Champion Again: In the co-main event, Jaime Munguía (46-2, 35 KOs, Tijuana, Mexico) displayed his versatility and dethroned Armando “Toro” Reséndiz (16-3, 11 KOs, Guayabitos, Mexico) to capture the WBA super middleweight world title via 12-round unanimous decision.
“I felt excellent throughout the fight. I listened to my corner and that turned into great results for us,” said Munguía, a two-time champion. ““Everything went exactly as we had it contemplated before the fight. I wanted to KO him, but everything was outstanding.”
Reséndiz was the aggressor for much of the fight, enjoying pockets of success while Munguia found his footing. Once Munguía did, he comfortably glided around the ring, using footwork to keep the undaunted Reséndiz off-balance and punishing him with hard shots at range. Munguía’s speed, power and creative combinations forced Reséndiz to be more selective with his own punches.
The final scores read 120-108, 119-109 and 117-111.
Jaime Munguía was named the winner by unanimous decision Saturday night against Armando Reséndiz with the score cards reading: 20-108, 119-109 and 117-111 in favor of Munguía – Image Credit: Golden Boy Promotions
“It feels great to have this championship belt with me, but this is just the beginning,” noted Munguía. “I’m excited for what comes next. We are ready for big challenges and great fights.”
Oscar Duarte (31-2-1, 23 KOs, Parral, Chihuahua, Mexico) won a hotly-contested 12-round split decision over Angel Fierro (23-5-2, 18 KOs, Tijuana, Mexico) in a super lightweight battle. Fierro missed the 140-pound weight limit by 3.4 pounds on Friday, yet Duarte opted to fight him anyway.
The decision nearly proved to be a costly one in this back-and-forth war.
“First of all, I want to thank everybody for being here and everybody who supported me,” said Duarte. “And listen, I won this fight and I made weight. He lost and he didn’t make weight.”
He added: “This was a good fight. Fierro is a great fighter. I respect him, but I won this fight. I went forward, pressed the action, and landed the best shots in a competitive fight. I always had the confidence that I was going to win. The fans enjoyed the fight, and that motivates me even more to give them another war next time.”
Duarte, pressing forward in the early going, cut off the ring and invested heavily to the body, while Fierro relied on movement, counters and sharp combinations. One judge scored it 116-112 for Fierro with the other two submitting cards of 116-112 and 115-113 in favor of Duarte.
In a thrilling battle between unbeaten super bantamweights, José “Tito” Sánchez (16-0, 10 KOs, Rancho Mirage, California) left undefeated by knocking out Jorge Chávez (15-1-1, 8 KOs, Tijuana, Mexico) at the 2:30 mark of the 10th round. It was a brilliant display by Sánchez, who wouldn’t be denied against a Chavez many had pegged as a future champion.
“I’m so excited,” Sánchez said afterward. “I showed everyone what I was capable of on Cinco de Mayo weekend with the Mexican style. I hope to get a title shot eventually.”
Rich Mancuso is a senior writer and columnist at LatinoSports.com with coverage of MLB, boxing, and MLS – X: @Ring786, Facebook.com/Rich Mancuso
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