David Benavidez became a three-division world champion Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, knocking out Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez at 2:59 of the sixth round to unify the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles. The bout headlined a PBC pay-per-view distributed on Prime Video on Cinco de Mayo weekend.

Benavidez, who moved up 25 pounds from light heavyweight for the fight, improved to 32-0 with 26 knockouts. He retains his WBC light heavyweight title. Ramirez, a former two-division titleholder, fell to 48-2 with 30 knockouts.

Round by Round

Round 1: Benavidez established range early, working behind a stiff jab and opening up with combinations. He flashed the hand speed that has defined his career at 168 and 175 pounds, landing clean at the heavier weight without visible difficulty.

Round 2: Benavidez switched to southpaw and continued to control the action. Ramirez, the natural left-hander, was unable to time his counters. When Ramirez led, Benavidez countered. When Ramirez held back, Benavidez moved forward behind the jab.

Round 3: Ramirez tried to walk Benavidez to the ropes and work the body. Benavidez slipped, rolled and parried the incoming, then turned Ramirez and resumed his work in the center of the ring.

Round 4: The first knockdown came in the closing seconds. A blistering combination forced Ramirez to take a knee. He beat the count and was saved by the bell as action resumed.

Round 5: Ramirez had his best round, fighting back with combinations of his own and forcing exchanges. Benavidez absorbed the work and answered before the bell.

Round 6: Another series of flurries hurt Ramirez. Benavidez closed the show, pounding away until Ramirez went down a second time and was counted out at 2:59.

Post-Fight Quotes

“I knew I wasn’t going to be able to overpower him because it was my first time coming up to 200 pounds,” Benavidez said. “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.”

Benavidez addressed his relationship with Ramirez, who he had sparred with as both fighters came up.

“I just wanted to give Ramirez thanks for the opportunity,” Benavidez said. “I love Zurdo Ramirez. 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 it is what it is in here. There’s only one Monster.”

Asked about his next move, Benavidez called out Canelo Alvarez, who was in attendance, and Dmitry Bivol.

“I see Canelo is in the building. Let me just ask the fans this. Do you guys want to see Canelo versus David Benavidez? 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,” Benavidez said.

“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. Bivol is the number one on my hit list.”

Co-Main Event: Munguia Decisions Resendiz

Jaime Munguia captured the WBA super middleweight title with a 12-round unanimous decision over Armando “Toro” Resendiz. Scores were 120-108, 119-109 and 117-111. Munguia improved to 46-2 with 35 knockouts. Resendiz dropped to 16-3 with 11 knockouts.

Resendiz pressed the action for stretches but Munguia found a rhythm with footwork and counters at range. The 12th round produced the most heated exchange of the fight, with Munguia hurting Resendiz with a right hand before Resendiz answered with rights of his own that pushed Munguia toward the ropes.

“I felt excellent throughout the fight. I listened to my corner and that turned into great results for us,” Munguia said. “I had Resendiz against the ropes. I was on the verge of knocking him down in that last round. We tried our best to knock him out, but it wasn’t meant to be and the win was ours.”

Undercard Results

Oscar Duarte def. Angel Fierro, SD 12 (super lightweight). Scores were 116-112 and 115-113 for Duarte, with one judge scoring 116-112 for Fierro. Fierro had missed the 140-pound limit by 3.4 pounds at Friday’s weigh-in. Duarte (31-2-1, 23 KOs) opened the fight pressing forward and working the body. Fierro (23-5-2, 18 KOs) shifted the momentum in the sixth with a left hook that stunned Duarte, and the fight remained competitive into the final rounds.

“I won this fight and I made weight. He lost and he didn’t make weight,” Duarte said. “I went forward, pressed the action, and landed the best shots in a competitive fight.”

Fierro disagreed with the verdict. “I believe the fight was mine, but I’m also happy with the support from the crowd and for putting on a show. The people saw it; the judges didn’t. I want a rematch.”

Jose “Tito” Sanchez def. Jorge Chavez, KO 10 (super bantamweight). Sanchez (16-0, 10 KOs) dropped Chavez (15-1-1, 8 KOs) twice in the 10th round, with the stoppage coming at 2:30. At the time of the finish, two judges had Sanchez ahead 86-85 and one had Chavez up 86-85.

“I showed everyone what I was capable of on Cinco de Mayo weekend with the Mexican style,” Sanchez said. “I hope to get a title shot eventually.”

Chavez, a former amateur opponent of Sanchez, said the result reflected the work in the ring. “The best man won today. No excuses. Back to the drawing board and I’ll try to do better next time.”

Ismael Flores def. Isaac Lucero, UD 10 (lightweight). Flores (18-1-1, 12 KOs) handed Lucero (18-1, 14 KOs) his first defeat by scores of 99-91, 98-92 and 98-92 in the pay-per-view opener. Flores took the fight on two weeks’ notice and wobbled Lucero with a right hand in the eighth.

“I was given two weeks’ notice for this fight, but it didn’t matter,” Flores said. “This was about many years of training hard, of prayer and sleepless nights. This is the fruit of that labor.”

First on Prime Streaming Card

Daniel Blancas (15-0, 7 KOs) won a 10-round unanimous decision over Raul Salomon (16-4-1, 14 KOs) by scores of 100-90 and 99-91 twice in the streaming main event.

Seventeen-year-old super lightweight prospect Dylan Capetillo improved to 2-0 with one knockout, taking a four-round unanimous decision (39-37 across all three cards) over James Pierce.

In the opener, Juan Carillo (15-0, 11 KOs) stopped Marlon Delgado (8-1, 6 KOs) at 2:59 of the fourth round.

The event was promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Sampson Boxing in association with TGB Promotions, with additional co-promoters on individual bouts.