Zurdo Ramírez Meets David Benavidez With Napalm on Cinco de Mayo

The Zurdo Ramirez vs. David Benavidez fight is a natural “Cinco De Mayo” showdown. For most of the last decade, Canelo Alvarez has dominated the Cinco de Mayo weekend. However, Alvarez’s career is in question following his loss to Terence Crawford.

At 35, Alvarez, who's been fighting since he was a teenager, faces a new enemy – uncertainty. His record, an impressive 63–3–2 (39 KOs), ensures a Hall of Fame induction one day. Who he fights this year, though, is less clear.

Not that long ago, David Benavidez was the WBC Interim champion at 168 lbs. He was Canelo’s mandatory challenger for over two years in that position. Canelo picked up the full WBC belt after Benavidez tested positive for cocaine. In the minds of many, there will always be an asterisk next to Canelo’s claim to have been the undisputed champion at 168 lbs as a result.

Canelo Alvarez | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

While Benavidez (31-0, 25 KOs) and fight fans would prefer the Canelo fight, Ramirez (48-1, 30 KOs) deserves a closer look.

Zurdo Ramirez, 34, is one of the hardest-working guys in boxing. He brings such a workman-like ethic to the sport that you half expect he has a lunch pail in the corner or stamps a time card when he enters the arena.

His loss to Dmitry Bivol would have ended the careers of many men. For Ramriez, it was another day, another dollar. He went right back at it, collecting big wins over name opponents like Joe Smith Jr. and others. He has made a decent run at cruiserweight, winning the WBA (Super) and WBO cruiserweight titles and defeating Yuniel Dorticos and Chris Billam-Smith (CBS).

The recent passing of actor Robert Duvall brought his Oscar-nominated role as Colonel Kilgore in "Apocalypse Now" back into consideration. Benavidez, 29, is boxing’s Colonel Kilgore – a dashing West Coaster (Ok, Benavidez is from Phoenix) and someone who understands psychological warfare better than anyone on the battlefield.

David Benavidez | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Kilgore, in his outdated cavalry uniform, blasts Wagner’s “Flight of the Valkyries” as he launches an air raid. Benavidez has built his own aura. He was labelled the “Mexican Monster” by Mike Tyson, and the nickname has stuck. He destroys opponents mentally and physically.

In the film, Colonel Kilgore becomes incensed when he discovers that Vietnamese communist forces control a prized strip of beach. How dare they?

Benavidez will be similarly incensed when he discovers that Ramirez wants the same real estate he does on the inside. Both men are good inside fighters, but Benavidez is also an elite one.

In "Apocalypse Now", Colonel Kilgore’s team is surprised by a hand grenade attack. Kilgore calls in the napalm.

On May 2nd, Benavidez may at first be surprised by Zurdo’s power and size. This will be the first time he is not the naturally bigger and stronger fighter. Eventually, Benavidez will bring his own “napalm” to the firefight. He has these beautiful, long combinations, and by the middle rounds, he starts dropping those bombs on Zurdo.

Benavidez last fought in November when he faced Anthony Yarde (27-4, 24 KOs). I had spoken to Anthony Yarde many times before the Benavidez fight. We happen to go to the same gym. He seemed confident that this, his third tilt for a heavyweight title, would be victorious.

It would be 3 a.m. when the fight started, more or less. The arena in Saudi Arabia was quiet, like the start of a Wagner opera. The staccato of Benavidez’s long combinations at times was the only sound in the arena. Benavidez was pitiless toward Yarde’s plan to finally become a world champion, and he eventually won the fight by a seventh-round TKO to retain his WBC light heavyweight title.

best wi — Jun 28, 2025; Anaheim, California, United States; Zurdo Ramirez moves in for a hit against Yuniel Dorticos at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Zurdo’s defense is not amazing. He is at times slower and more deliberate. Benavidez will, in the parlance of the Vietnam War, seek and destroy.

Cinco de Mayo weekend has always belonged to boxing’s kings. The holiday has its origins in an unlikely victory over French forces fighting in Mexico to save the monarchy.

If Benavidez wins on May 2nd, it may not be his full coronation, though. His goal is to return to 175 lbs to lure Canelo Alvarez into a fight.