When is Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez?
Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez is on Saturday, May 2. The main broadcast will begin at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (1 a.m. BST). A free three-fight preliminary undercard will start at 5:30 p.m. ET (10:30 p.m. BST).
What channel is Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez on?
Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez is a pay-per-view available for purchase via Amazon’s Prime Video, DAZN, PPV.com, and traditional cable and satellite outlets.
The free preliminary undercard will stream for free for both subscribers and non-subscribers on Prime Video.
Where is Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez?
The fight is taking place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Who is Gilberto Ramirez?
Gilberto Ramirez, 48-1 (30 KOs), is a two-division titleholder who has unified two world titles at cruiserweight.
Ramirez, a 34-year-old from Mexico, has been fighting professionally for nearly 17 years. He competed as low as middleweight during his development as a prospect and settled into 168lbs as he transitioned into a contender. By 2016, Ramirez became a world titleholder, pitching a dominant shutout of Arthur Abraham to capture the WBO belt. Ramirez made five successful defenses, including a pair of highly competitive and entertaining battles with Jesse Hart.
A move to light heavyweight followed. Ramirez won five fights at 175lbs from 2019 to 2022 before challenging Dmitry Bivol for the WBA title. With this writer watching the stream while sitting near the edge of a volcano, Bivol won a wide decision and sent Ramirez up to his next weight class.
Ramirez arrived at cruiserweight in October 2023, defeating former light heavyweight titleholder Joe Smith Jnr. While Ramirez does not appear to be toned or muscular, he isn’t out of shape either, given how he’s thriving so far at 200lbs. In 2024, Ramirez outpointed Arsen Goulamirian for the WBA belt and did the same to Chris Billam-Smith to add the WBO title. Most recently, Ramirez won a unanimous decision over former titleholder Yuniel Dorticos last June.
Ramirez underwent shoulder surgery after the Dorticos victory. He was initially expecting to return this January against unbeaten contender Robin Sirwan Safar, but Safar was hurt and unable to compete. So Ramirez is jumping straight into a potentially difficult outing against Benavidez. Even though Ramirez has been at cruiserweight while Benavidez is only now arriving, it is the challenger who is the betting favorite.
While Benavidez and Ramirez have sparred in the past and are respectful of each other, don’t expect the action to be overly friendly once the bell rings.
Who is David Benavidez?
David Benavidez, 31-0 (25 KOs), is a two-division titleholder who has long been chasing the big fights – and finally another major opponent is just as eager to face him.
It’s amazing to realize that Benavidez is still just 29 years old. The Arizonan has been fighting professionally since late 2013, initially cutting his teeth in Mexico before he turned 18 and could legally compete in the United States. He’d impressed as a teenager while sparring with talented pros, and he soon began to fulfill his potential within the paid ranks.
Benavidez had two world title reigns at super middleweight. The first began in 2017, when he beat Ronald Gavril by split decision to capture the vacant WBC belt. Benavidez won far more clearly in their rematch five months later. But that first title run soon ended because of a positive cocaine test taken while out of competition.
In September 2019, Benavidez knocked out Anthony Dirrell in the ninth round to regain the WBC title. Once again, his reign didn’t last long. Benavidez came in overweight for his first defense, dropping the title on the scales. But he was able to remain at 168lbs, won an interim title in 2022 and positioned himself for a shot at undisputed champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. Alas, that shot never came. All the while, Benavidez added two more good wins, outpointing former titleholder Caleb Plant and stopping fellow divisional boogeyman Demetrius Andrade.
Benavidez ultimately gave up on the Canelo fight and moved up to light heavyweight in 2024. First he defeated Oleksandr Gvozdyk to pick up the WBC’s interim belt at 175lbs in June 2024, earning a shot at whomever sat on the throne after the first bout between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol.
Apparently Benavidez traded one waiting game for another. Beterbiev won but went straight into a rematch with Bivol, and so Benavidez outpointed David Morrell in February 2025, adding a secondary WBA belt. Bivol triumphed in the sequel with Beterbiev to become undisputed but vacated his WBC title. That led to Benavidez being upgraded. He made his first defense last November, blasting through Anthony Yarde in seven rounds.
Bivol has a long-overdue mandatory defense due against Michael Eifert, at last taking place on May 30. Beterbiev has yet to return to the ring. And so Benavidez has jumped up to 200lbs for this match with Ramirez, headlining on the traditional Cinco de Mayo boxing weekend pay-per-view. Benavidez says he feels stronger and more powerful at cruiserweight but still expects to return to 175lbs afterward.
What other fights are on the undercard of Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez?
The four-fight undercard is topped by a title bout in the co-feature: Jose Armando Resendiz, 16-2 (11 KOs), will defend his WBA super middleweight title against Jaime Munguia, 45-2 (35 KOs).
This is Resendiz’s first defense since he upset Caleb Plant for the secondary interim belt 11 months ago; he was upgraded after Terence Crawford retired and vacated. Munguia hasn’t fought in almost exactly a year, when he won his rematch with Bruno Surace. Munguia subsequently tested positive for a banned substance. Some have called into question whether Munguia was truly cleared of the allegations.
Also on this show: Oscar Duarte, 30-2-1 (23 KOs), will take on Angel Fierro, 23-4-2 (18 KOs), in a junior welterweight bout; junior middleweight prospect Isaac Lucero, 18-0 (14 KOs), will face Ismael Flores, 17-1-1 (12 KOs); and in the show’s opener, Jorge Chavez, 15-0-1 (8 KOs), will face fellow unbeaten junior featherweight Jose “Tito” Sanchez, 15-0 (9 KOs).
The full list of undercard fights can be seen on BoxRec.
David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
