By Norm Frauenheim (Ringside) –
PHOENIX – There was a crowd of about 8,000. And there was an audience of one.
David Benavidez hopes he heard them.
All along, the Benavidez campaign has been about Canelo Alvarez. He’s been chasing Canelo for a couple of years. On Saturday, he delivered another performance in a homecoming that keeps him squarely in the mix for a shot at the undisputed super-middleweight champion.
Benavidez (25-0, 25 KOs) beat a tough Kyrone Davis (16-3-1, 6 KOs), forcing Davis’ corner to throw in the towel early in the seventh round at The Footprint Center.
“I think everybody wants to see me fight Canelo, right? Benavidez said in the middle of the ring moments after his victory.
The crowd roared yes. A Showtime audience heard it. Maybe, Canelo did too. The echoes will be there weeks from now as Canelo thinks about who’s next. There’s plenty of talk about a Benavidez-Canelo showdown on May 7. It’s a perfect match – Benavidez, a Mexican-American against Canelo, a Mexican — for the Cinco de Mayo celebration.
But Canelo, deliberate in the ring and out of it, said he won’t be in a rush to make a decision. He has the belts. He has the pay-per-view numbers. He has options aplenty. He has the time. He’s has it all.
For now, Benavidez can only wait. That won’t be easy.
“I don’t care what his assessment of my fight is,’’ Benavidez said of Canelo. “But they keep putting these contenders in front of me.
“…They need to give me the opportunity. I’ll go through anybody.’’
At 24, Benavidez is still a maturing fighter with poise and power. He’s anxious to test that poise, use the power against the biggest name in the game.
Both were evident, again and again, through six rounds against Davis, who took huge shots from a relentless assault from the taller Benavidez.
Benavidez is known for throwing a so-called volume of punches. But there was no silencing Davis, a Terence Crawford sparring partner who agreed to the fight just two weeks before opening bell. In the end, Davis trainer Stephen Edwards stepped in with a timely decision. It was time to end it. He did so at 47 seconds of the round
“David Benavidez is a tremendous fighter,’’ Edwards said. “He’s a monster.
“We fought. We tried to win. We didn’t come here to lay down. I think a lot people through that was the case. But I love this kid. I didn’t want to see him get hurt.’’
Seconds after the towel landed in the center of the ring, Benavidez showed his appreciation for Davis. He hugged him.
“He thanked me, thanked me for being a warrior,’’ Davis said.
David Benavidez’ victory helped his family and his fans forget about brother Jose Benavidez Jr.’s debatable majority draw with Argentine Francisco Torres (17-3-1, 5 KOs) in 10-round fight contracted to be at 159 pounds. Two judges scored it 95-95 each. One judged scored it 96-94 for Jose, who was fighting for the first time in three years. 15 Rounds scored it 96-94 for Torres.
“I don’t know how I got a draw,’’ Jose Jr. (27-2, 18 KOs) said. “We can run it back. I beat him. I thought I beat him. He kept running. He didn’t want to stay in the pocket. I can’t do anything about the judges’ decisions. I felt good. He just kept holding. I beat him every round. What can I do?
“I beat him. I beat him. He wasn’t hitting me hard. He just kept holding.’’
But the crowd seems to think otherwise. It booed Jose Benavidez. It cheered Torres.
In the end, however, there were only cheers.
For both David Benavidez and Davis.
Best of the Undercard
Junior-middleweight Elijah Garcia (9-0, 8 KOs) of nearby Glendale AZ, opened the show, flashing some prospect possibilities with a succession of power shots for a fifth-round TKO of Todd Manuel (2-91-1, 6 KOs) of Rayne, LA.
The Rest
Micky Scala (3-0, 1 KO), a Mesa AZ junior-middleweight who recently signed with Floyd Mayweather, endured some head-rocking shots, countered and in the end won a four-round unanimous decision over Martez Jackson (5-6-3, 2 KOs) of Macon GA.
Jesus Ibarra (12-0, 6 KOs), a junior-welterweight from Mesa AZ, calls himself Monsoon. He showed why in the second, storming Mexican Hector (12-14-2, 6 KOs) for a TKO victory at 2:05 of the round.
Farid Ngoga (12-0, 11 KOs), a junior-middleweight from Glendale AZ, employed a mix of speed and precision for a unanimous decision over Isaac Freeman (3-10-2, 3 KOs) of Los Angeles.
Junior-lightweight Jonathan Fierro (12-0, 11 KOs) didn’t waste any time. It took him 29 seconds to blow out fellow Mexican Victor Ruiz (13-12, 11 KOs). Officially it was a technical knockout. Nothing technical about it.
Phoenix featherweight Keenan Carbajal (23-2-1, 15 KOs) was too big for an overmatched Josean Bonilla (12-7-2, 9 KOs), who was bloodied and beaten after three rounds. The referee ended it after just two second of the fourth.
