The four fights in Saudi Arabia last night delivered thrills and spills. There were victories for David Benavidez, Devin Haney, Jesse Rodriguez and Abdullah Mason over Anthony Yarde, Brian Norman Jnr, Fernando Martinez and Sam Noakes, respectively.
Here, the BoxingScene team discusses their takeaways from the big bill.
Tris Dixon: It’s hard not to be impressed by any of the winners and, really, those who suffered defeats. From the losing corner, Sam Noakes clearly gave his all, and Anthony Yarde again went out on his shield. But take your pick from the winners. You can see why the queue to face Benavidez is so short, kudos to Haney for delivering a performance many felt was now beyond him, Mason showed the grit and toughness he’d not had to before and what else can you say about ‘Bam’? There’s a reason why all fighters and hardcore fans love him. He’s a fighting superstar.
Tom Ivers: I was impressed by all four of the winners last night. I’ll start with Abdullah Mason, he dug in deep and battled it out in a cracking fight with Sam Noakes to become the youngest current world champion. However, I think he needs a few nice voluntary defenses before he mixes it with the the real elite at 135lbs. ‘Bam’ Rodriguez proved yet again why he is one of the best fighters in the world. He makes it look so easy, which is the biggest compliment I can give him. He’s like the Maradona of boxing, just effortlessly brilliant. I can’t see anyone beating him from 115lbs south. I’m not sure why Devin Haney has been on the end of criticism for his performance. He was brilliant against the best ranked welterweight, and is now the man to beat at 147lbs. David Benavidez was again relentless and did what we all expected him to do. I really like the matchup with Zurdo next.
Jake Donovan: Devin Haney was the night’s biggest winner. His fight with Brian Norman Jnr was the only statistical pick-’em, though most fans and experts seemed to believe the likeliest outcome was for Norman to rack up his fourth consecutive knockout. Instead, Haney thoroughly boxed his way to a third divisional crown - and likely back in the mythical pound-for-pound rankings. Speaking of which, there is no question after last night that Bam is - at worst - a top 4 P4P fighter, right behind the given top 3 (Crawford, Usyk, Inoue) and arguably already in that conversation. I sense his next fight(s) will be in Japan - more so if Kenshiro Teraji can dethrone IBF titlist Willibaldo Garcia next month. That’s the one fight keeping Bam at 115, otherwise I see him immediately taking over 118 next year. Benavidez had the perfect opponent to shine in the manner which he did and I love that he already has his next fight set. PBC and Golden Boy have been trying for a while to piece together a big show, and this forthcoming event is one that the U.S. scene badly needs. Looking forward to what’s next for both Abdullah Mason and Sam Noakes and how Norman bounces back (still young, still plenty of time). As for Puma and Yarde – valiant in defeat but grim times ahead. There are more options for Yarde on the domestic level – if he and Tunde want them. The massive gulf between his elite competition and the rest of his resume suggests otherwise.
Owen Lewis: As I’ve written before, I wanted to see Benavidez against Dmitry Bivol before “The Mexican Monster” took his leave for cruiserweight. I completely understand why he doesn’t want to wait around for Bivol and Beterbiev to settle their business a third time – he’s probably looking at a year, minimum, before Bivol is ready to step in with him – but what a disappointment that we won’t get to see that matchup. Though Zurdo is a fine fight, does anyone who watched Benavidez walk through Yarde think he could win for any reason besides size? Benavidez-Bivol would have been a true match of elite fighters, in their primes, at a weight that suits them both. With all due respect to Artur Beterbiev, who is approaching his 41st birthday, I have no real interest in seeing him fight Bivol a third time. Kudos to Benavidez for not wasting his time, but shame on everybody that failed to get him a legacy-defining fight in a second weight class.
I also think Bam Rodriguez is a surefire future pound-for-pound number one. As Jake wrote, he should be no lower than fourth already and remains so far from having to explore the outer boundaries of his ability, even further than Benavidez.
Matt Christie: I was pleased for Devin Haney after such a complete performance against an opponent plenty felt could beat him. Though only 27, too many were too quick to write off Haney after last year’s loss/no-contest to Ryan Garcia – who not only came in over the weight limit beforehand but also failed a PED test. Now he must listen to Conor Benn, no stranger to grappling with drug-enforcement agencies himself, telling the three-weight beltholder he’s a boring fighter. Jesse Rodriguez was typically impressive, so too David Benavidez, and one suspects both Abdullah Mason and Sam Noakes – once rested – will be even better fighters after their blistering 12-rounder.
Lucas Ketelle: That Benavidez is trending toward being an all-time great and is no longer letting other fighters dictate his career. Without being able to land a Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, Dmitry Bivol, or Artur Beterbiev fight, Benavidez will fight at cruiserweight in 2026 against Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez. Benavidez is no longer going to wait to see how things play out. He is going to continue to go up in weight until he gets his interesting fights. Haney just did what all-time great fighters do, and was unable to rewrite the narrative around his story, and questions about his punch resistance and willingness to fight. Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez made another titleholder look like a novice, as he is truly an all-time great, and Mason-Noakes gave us an action fight for the ages. Both showed the ability to fighter through adversity. Now the question becomes are these type of bouts sustainable at the highest level of the sport?
Jason Langendorf: There had been rumblings that Abdullah Mason might not be ready, but he passed an important test against Noakes. Bam Rodriguez offered his latest testimony in the unofficial runoff with Oleksandr Usyk, Naoya Inoue and Terence Crawford for the mantle of best fighter on the planet. Devin Haney did more than just show he isn’t cooked – he arrived in Riyadh and unlocked the best version of himself yet. My biggest takeaway, though: I’m jazzed to see David Benavidez taking control of his career, carving out his own path and willing himself into big fights. He has been denied for too long, and his talent and balls deserve the sort of showcase Cinco de Mayo can deliver. (Latching on to that weekend is also a subtle tweak of Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, which – let’s be honest – he kinda had coming.)
David Greisman: Abdullah Mason continues to show plenty of potential, and continues to improve, but he also has more work to do to shore up his defense and learn how to handle the levels of skill and resistance that he’ll face at these echelons. That’s fine for a 21-year-old; he’s far from the first world titleholder who will still be learning on the job. Sam Noakes rose to the occasion and showed plenty to make up for his physical disadvantages. He’ll likely take some confidence-builders and profile-boosters at home first, but I’d then love to see him against the second tier, including William Zepeda.
“Bam” Rodriguez continues to blow me away. He’s done more in the past four years than most fighters will accomplish in their entire careers. Devin Haney saved his career, but I don’t know that he made as many new fans as he would have if he had continued to push the pedal to the metal and punished Brian Norman Jnr further. He’s clearly seeing the WBO world title as leverage for continuing to land him big fights.
Declan Warrington: That, as good as David Benavidez is, the best fight at 175lbs remains a third between Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev, that as long as Jesse "Bam" Rodriguez is motivated there isn't anyone around him who can threaten him, that Abdullah Mason still has some way to go before realising the potential we all hope he has, that Sam Noakes is a world-level lightweight, and that Devin Haney has recovered from "losing" to Ryan Garcia – and to the extent that he is by some distance the best fighter in an otherwise unremarkable welterweight division.
