RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – NOVEMBER 22: David Benavidez poses with his title belts after defeating Anthony Yarde by TKO in round 7 in a WBC and WBA light-heavyweight title fight during Ring IV: Night of the Champions at ANB Arena on November 22, 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images)

The sport of boxing is set to enter a transition period over the next couple of years, with the face of the sport, Canelo Alvarez, entering the last few years of his career. The Ring Magazine’s pound-for-pound best Terence Crawford, Oleksandr Usyk, Naoya Innoue, Dmitri Bivol, and Artur Beterbiev combine for an average age of 36. Still, the sport has several promising young boxers poised to lead the next generation, including Bam Rodriguez, Shakur Stevenson, Abdullah Mason, Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, and Vergil Ortiz. However, who becomes the A-Side of the next generation, the cannot miss fighter, the PPV star, and the face of the sport, the way Canelo Alvarez has been for this generation, remains to be seen. 

The Ring Magazine IV card was an excellent showcase for the next generation of boxing, featuring Abdullah Mason, Devin Haney, and Bam Rodriguez. Mason demonstrated he has both the skill and toughness to be a superstar in this sport for years to come. Devin Haney reminded everyone that he is one of the most skilled and disciplined boxers under the age of 30, and Bam Rodriguez showed he is among the best pound-for-pound boxers today. However, the boxer that already has the ingredients to be the next face of boxing was the headliner of Ring Magazine IV Card, David Benavidez. 

The 28-year-old Benavidez’s performance against Anthony Yarde was the perfect example of why Benavidez’s nickname is the Mexican Monster. He demonstrated power, blazing hand speed, good defense, and excellent cardio. Those intangibles, along with his ultra-aggressive fight style, are all the ingredients Benavidez needs to become the face of the fight game. Benavidez landed 42% of his punches (159/380) in the seven-round affair in comparison to 19% (58/308) for Yarde. The WBC and WBA light heavyweight champion also landed 45% of his power punches (120/264) in comparison to 25% for Yarde (45/172).

“Anthony Yarde normally is a super explosive guy who throws hard. He didn’t really throw hard punches. He couldn’t get anything off and he couldn’t get anything going. David Benavidez is a scary, scary guy and being trapped in a ring with him is an issue for anyone. One in these weight classes where the 75 or cruise weight.” former boxer turned analyst Chris Algeri told Boxing Scene.

The only thing missing for David Benavidez is getting big fights. Canelo Alvarez has spent the last several years refusing to fight David Benavidez. So, Benavidez moved up from super middleweight to light heavyweight. In three fights at light heavyweight, Benavidez has put together a strong resume, defeating Oleksandr Gvozdyk, David Morrell, and Anthony Yarde. Nonetheless, the division’s two top dogs, Dmitri Bivol and Artur Beterbiev, ranked number five and number six pound for pound, respectively, by the Ring Magazine, are tied up in a rubber match to conclude their trilogy whenever Bivol is ready to compete following back surgery. Wherever he goes, Benavidez has been unable to secure the big fights, which is really unfortunate because he deserves it and the fans want to see it. In his post-fight interview, Benavidez announced he will face WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez on May 2nd in Las Vegas. The Ring Magazine’s Mike Coppinger reported that the Benavidez versus Ramirez fight is contingent on Ramirez winning his scheduled fight with Robin Safar on January 16th.

“I’m going to correct you guys when you guys keep saying that I don’t get these fights. I don’t get that fight. I don’t get none of these fights because these guys don’t want to fight me. If I would have had those fights were available, I would have took that fight. I was trying to fight Bivol for this fight. He didn’t want to take the fight.” David Benavidez told the Ring Magazine following his 7th round stoppage victory over Anthony Yarde.

Bivol and Beterbiev will fight again at some point in 2026, and meanwhile, Benavidez has a massive fight booked for Cinco de Mayo weekend against a fellow Mexican fighter, Zurdo Ramirez. If Benavidez wins, he becomes a three-division world champion before the age of 30. He can either come back down to light heavyweight to challenge the winner of Bivol and Beterbiev’s trilogy, or the winner can challenge him at cruiserweight. It seems impossible for Benavidez not to share the ring with the winner of Bivol and Beterbiev following their trilogy. Turki Alalshikh clearly holds Benavidez in high regard, as he has headlined a major Ring Magazine card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Alalshikh will almost certainly use his influence and resources to book Benavidez in the big fight he’s been working towards. Putting Benavidez, the Ring Magazine’s eighth-ranked pound-for-pound fighter, against a fellow top ten opponent in Bivol or Beterbiev will make for a massive fight in boxing. Imagine it—Benavidez versus Bivol or Beterbiev. Two fighters ranked in the pound-for-pound top ten on Netflix for the world to watch. It will be the opportunity for Benavidez to become the face of boxing.