Sebastian Fundora picks David Benavidez to beat Zurdo Ramirez

Sebastian has sparred with David before and believes he will emerge victorious on May 2. “I’ve got David, I’ve got David winning that fight. David’s too fast. We saw in his last fight how he’s way too fast for these light heavyweights. He’s going up to cruiserweight, they’re a lot slower, they’re stronger, but David’s also strong.”

Fundora believes Benavidez’s speed will be too much for Ramirez to handle. David not only has speed, but also punishes opponents with quick combos and accurate strikes. He is one of the most accurate punchers in boxing with a total connection rate of 38.5 percent. In his last match against Anthony Yarde, he choked him with his punches.

Landing 42 percent of his total shots, Yarde is unable to start a counter-offensive. He landed a paltry 19 percent of his total shots before finally being stopped in the seventh round (Compubox).

Benavidez and Ramirez are familiar with each other as they have had numerous sparring sessions themselves. They did so at an open weight, which is similar to the cruiserweight division in which they will fight.

Gilberto said at the launch press conference that, in terms of power, he feels they are about the same in terms of power, with neither having a clear advantage. This will be Zurdo’s fourth fight at cruiserweight, and he is the current unified WBA and WBO champion. In terms of divisional experience, he has the edge.

There is a 25 pound difference between the light heavyweight limit of 175 and the cruiserweight limit of 200. David moved up to light heavyweight in June 2024, and after three fights, he is moving up to cruiserweight.

He does have the advantage in terms of speed and accuracy, but what remains to be seen is how a 200-pound Benavidez will perform. Knowing how to put the weight on correctly is important; those boxers who simply put on mass are the ones who tend to struggle the most when moving up in weight.

The jump from light heavyweight to cruiserweight is significant, and if Benavidez can do it intelligently, he will be able to have the same advantages he had at light heavyweight. Daring to be big by trying to earn a title in his third division, he could have stood on the sidelines and waited for Dmitri Bivol or Artur Beterbiev to be available, but instead he chose to fight Zurdo when the opportunity presented itself.