David Benavidez on Saturday retained the interim world super middleweight belt by stopping Demetrius Andrade after the sixth round, while in Ireland, Katie Taylor avenged her only professional loss by beating Chantelle Cameron in a majority decision to become a two-weight undisputed champion.
In what was billed as clash of styles that could go the distance between unbeaten 168-pounders (76.2kg), Benavidez (28-0, 24 KOs) looked more like a clinician with a dominating performance before Andrade’s corner requested the stoppage after the sixth round in Las Vegas.
Andrade (32-1) suffered the first loss of his career.
Photo: AFP
Benavidez is widely recognized as the world’s best super middleweight after Canelo Alvarez. Immediately after his win he called for a match against Alvarez to unify the super middleweight title as 9,585 fans roared their approval.
“I think I solidified myself as the dominant performer I am,” Benavidez said in the ring during the post-fight interview on Showtime. “Now just give me the fight that everyone wants to see.
“Let’s give the people what they want to see and they want to see David Benavidez against Canelo.”
Photo: Reuters
After three close rounds, Benavidez, 26, lived up to his nickname of “The Mexican Monster,” neutralizing Andrade’s technical skills by implementing a violent nonstop pounding over the final three rounds.
In the fourth round, Benavidez began landing solid shots and taking advantage of openings for follow-up combinations while absorbing everything Andrade threw before scoring a knockdown just before the bell.
Benavidez’s boxing skills were on full display in the fifth round, as he moved forward aggressively and continued to impose his size and power to weaken the former two-division world champion.
“It’s the fighting spirit ... it’s my passion,” Benavidez said about being triggered every time he was hit. “If you hit with me one or two punches, I’ll come back with five or six.”
Benavidez closed a minus-430 favorite at FanDuel, which means bettors would have had to lay US$430 to win US$100.
He said he hopes his command performance will be what it takes to finally lure Alvarez into the ring.
“I just want to say welcome to the David Benavidez era,” Benavidez said.
In Dublin, Taylor improved to 23-1 after the judges scored the bout 98-92, 96-94 and 95-95 at 3Arena, six months after a majority decision went Cameron’s way in the same venue.
The 37-year-old Taylor, whose lightweight belts were not on the line, now adds Cameron’s world super-lightweight titles at 140 pounds (63.5kg).
“That was the longest six months of my life waiting for this rematch,” Taylor said in the ring. “Tonight, you’ve seen the real me, and when I box like that nobody can beat me.”
The Irishwoman said she is open to a third fight with Cameron and named Ireland’s largest stadium as a location.
“Let’s get the trilogy at Croke Park,” she said of the 82,000-capacity venue.
It was Cameron’s first professional loss. The 32-year-old Englishwoman’s record is 18-1.
Freddie Freeman homered and drove in four runs, Shohei Ohtani also went deep and Roki Sasaki earned his first major league win as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves 10-3 on Saturday night for their seventh straight victory. The Dodgers have won the first two games of the series to improve to 5-0 against Atlanta this year. Los Angeles’ three-game sweep at home early in the season left the Braves 0-7. Sasaki allowed three runs and six hits over five innings. The 23-year-old right-hander gave up a home run to Ozzie Albies, but received plenty of offensive support in his
Bayern Munich on Sunday were crowned German champions for the 34th time, giving striker Harry Kane his first major trophy, after second-placed Bayer 04 Leverkusen drew 2-2 at SC Freiburg. Bayern’s 3-3 draw at RB Leipzig on Saturday, when the Bavarians came from two goals down to take the lead before conceding a stoppage-time equalizer, meant defending Bundesliga champions Leverkusen needed to win at Freiburg to delay the title party. Leverkusen were two goals down before scoring twice in the final 10 minutes, but Xabi Alonso’s side could not find a third, as Bayern reclaimed the title at the first attempt after
THRILLER: Raphinha gave Barca a 3-2 lead with two minutes remaining of regular time, but Francesco Acerbi equalized the game in the second minute of added time Davide Frattesi on Tuesday fired Inter into the UEFA Champions League final with an extra-time winner that gave the Italians a stunning 4-3 triumph over Barcelona, 7-6 on aggregate. Italy midfielder Frattesi won a tie for the ages under a downpour in Milan when he lashed home in the 99th minute, sending a packed and rocking San Siro wild with joy. Simone Inzaghi’s team will face either Arsenal or Paris Saint-Germain at the end of this month in Munich, Germany, where they would feel they have a great chance to be crowned kings of Europe for a fourth time after
PAINFUL VICTORY: Ruud said that felt pain in his rib during the warmup and was put on painkillers so that he could finish the match against Argentine Francisco Cerundolo With the help of painkillers, Casper Ruud overcame a rib ailment to defeat Francisco Cerundolo in straight sets and reach the Madrid Open final on Friday. Ruud is to face Jack Draper, who beat Lorenzo Musetti 6-3, 7-6 (4) in the other semi-final to make his third final of the year. Ruud received treatment on his rib three games into the match and went on to win 6-4, 7-5 on the Caja Magica center court. The 15th-ranked Norwegian saved 15 of the 18 break points he faced against the 21st-ranked Argentine. Ruud said he felt something in his rib during the warmup, just before