Benavidez destroys Yarde in Round 7

David Benavidez (31-0, 25 KOs) did what many fans expected him to do, destroying #4 Anthony Yarde (27-4, 24 KOs) via seventh-round knockout to retain his WBC light heavyweight title Saturday night in the headliner of the stacked Ring IV event at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

(Credit: Queensberry/Leigh Dawney)

Benavidez turns up the heat

‘The Mexican Monster’ Benavidez fought at times as if he was holding back on purpose, allowing the powerful but outmatched challenger Yarde to have his moments in the fight. But when he turned it on, it was effortless with how he buried the British fighter with rapid-fire combinations.

In the seventh round, Benavidez came alive after Yarde nailed him with hard right hands early. He unleashed a flurry of shots that bloodied Yarde’s nose, cutting and swelling his lips. After absorbing what seemed like 15 consecutive head shots, Yarde sank to the canvas. Benavidez got a little overzealous and nailed him with a shot while he was down.

The referee stopped the action, took a point for the illegal hit by Benavidez. When the action resumed, Benavidez finished off the bloodied Yarde with another unanswered flurry to earn a stoppage. The time was 1:59 of round seven.

Illegal shots go unpunished

In the fourth round, Benavidez got away with some illegal shots as he held Yarde by the neck with one arm and nailed him with 10 straight head shots without the referee stepping in to stop the illegal move. The only reason Benavidez stopped is because the round ended. It was hard to see Benavidez getting away with so many illegal strikes in a fight that he was heavily favored to win.

Yarde is brave but knocked out

Yarde showed superior power in the match and landed hard shots in every round. His problem was that he was limited to throwing single punches, which were no match for the fast combinations that Benavidez hit him with. Benavidez motioned for him to land to his head and body. Yarde was helpful, but he couldn’t match the return fire of the Mexican Monster when he turned on his attack.

After the fight, Benavidez revealed that he will move up to cruiserweight to face WBA and WBO champion Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez next in 2026.