The Ring IV: Night of Champions -- results, highlights: David Benavidez scores TKO of Anthony Yarde to retain

Benavidez scored his first finish at 175 pounds while setting his sights on another divisional crown

David Benavidez retained his WBC light heavyweight championship in style on Saturday night, dominating Anthony Yarde en route to a seventh-round TKO. The stoppage win was Benavidez's first since moving to the 175-pound division, and he did so with all the tools that had made him one of the best in the world at super middleweight.

From the opening round, Benavidez's advantages were clear. Yarde was the man with more physical strength, but Benavidez was the more complete boxer, and his blistering hand speed left Yarde struggling to find any opportunities to get meaningful offense working.

Round after round, Yarde was forced back into the ropes, where he would only be able to get off single shots as Benavidez flurried with blistering combinations.

While Yarde would have brief moments of success, it was clear that Benavidez was wearing down the challenger. That all came to a head in Round 7, with Benavidez scoring a knockdown as he unleashed a flurry with Yarde trapped in the corner. Benavidez did lose a point after landing one punch in that flurry after Yarde had already been knocked down.

The point deduction would not factor into the result, however, with Benavidez continuing his assault along the ropes, forcing the referee to jump in at the 1:59 mark of Round 7 after a series of Benavidez left hands.

After the fight, Benavidez said that the fight was exactly what he expected, and that he believed the fight would be a war when he signed the fight agreement with a man who had twice challenged for world titles, previously losing to Sergei Kovalev and Artur Beterbiev.

"I'd grade [my performance] a B+, I'm not going to lie," Benavidez said. "There's always room for improvement. They said I couldn't stop this guy and I had no power at 175, I made it look better than Beterbiev and Kovalev."

Benavidez twice held the WBC title at super middleweight, losing the belt once for a failed drug test and once for failing to make weight ahead of a scheduled defense. After leaving for light heavyweight when it was clear a fight with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez would never materialize, Benavidez was promoted from interim WBC champion to full champ.

Now, Benavidez said he has his sights set on gold in a third weight division, announcing plans to face WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion Gilberto "Zurdo" Ramírez.

"May 2, me against Zurdo Ramirez, I'm going up to cruiserweight to fight for his title," Benavidez said. "... I think it might be in Las Vegas for my people. I wanted to go back to Las Vegas."

CBS Sports was with you throughout the entire way on Saturday with the live results and highlights below.

The Ring IV: Night of Champions fight card, results

• David Benavidez (c) def. Anthony Yarde via seventh-round TKO
• Devin Haney def Brian Norman Jr. (c) via unanimous decision (114-113, 117-110, 116-111)
• Jesse "Bam" Rodriguez (c) def. Fernando Martinez (c) via 10th-round knockout
• Abdullah Mason (c) def. Sam Noakes via unanimous decision (117-111, 115-113, 115-113)

[Nov 22, 2025 at 10:03 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Benavidez again pushed Yarde into the ropes and landed a hard left hand. Yarde's nose and mouth were bleeding and his eyes were swelling as Benavidez flurried in the corner until Yarde hit the canvas. Benavidez lost a point for landing a punch after Yarde hit the canvas. Benavidez landed to the body before flurrying to the head. Yarde again got trapped in the corner and Benavidez flurried with big shots. After two thudding left hooks, the referee jumped in to call a halt to the bout.

The first knockout of Benavidez's career at 175 pounds as he defends his WBC championship

[Nov 22, 2025 at 10:00 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Yarde finally backed Benavidez into the ropes after a few shots. Benavidez flurried hard off the ropes, backing off Yarde. Yarde landed a good right hand and a short uppercut as Benavidez waved him on. Benavidez forced Yarde into the ropes and unloaded a big combination, bloodying Yarde's nose. Benavidez landed a hard left and then flurried more against the ropes. Another hard right landed for Benavidez. Dominant end to the round for Benavidez after good early work from Yarde.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:56 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Yarde tried to work the jab early but ate a left hook and then a hard straight right hand. Benavidez cracked with a left hand as Yarde was along the ropes. Yarde again found himself trapped in the corner eating clean shots. Yarde just hasn't done anything near enough in these rounds to be competitive.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:52 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Benavidez again landed a flurry against the ropes, with Yarde doing very little in return. Benavidez continued to score along the ropes, not hurting Yarde, but piling up points and having flashy moments while Yarde jabbed and didn't do much else. Benavidez began calling Yarde in to throw and then unloaded an extended flurry of left hands to the head while Yarde held on to his right. Impressive stuff from Benavidez to end the round.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:47 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Benavidez landed a solid jab. Benavidez stepped in with a left and a right behind it. Yarde dipped down with a right hand to the body. Benavidez ate a left hand. A left from Benavidez connected as Yarde continued to defend well, but without a ton of offensive success. Benavidez connected with a combination along the ropes. Benavidez again connected with a hard right hand as Yarde stayed with his back along the ropes. A very good round for Benavidez.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:43 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Benavidez landed a good overhand right. Yarde responded with a sweeping left hook. Benavidez dipped to the body with a left hand but ate a straight right from Yarde moments later. Benavidez worked the jab a bit before Yarde responded in turn. Benavidez connected with some good shots after trapping Yarde against the ropes. Another right hand scored for Benavidez before a good flurry of shots. Nothing was landing cleanly, but Benavidez was the one doing more work in the round.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:39 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Yarde tried to throw a one-two combo, but Benavidez picked off both shots with his gloves. Benavidez landed a hard right hand along the ropes. Benavidez landed to the body along the ropes before Yarde landed a good right hand counter. Benavidez went to the body with a jab. Benavidez landed a hard right in the final moments of the round. 

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:21 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

It's just about time for the main event. Yarde has twice failed to capture world titles, though his spirited effort against Artur Beterbiev in 2023 shook some of the thought that Yarde was a fighter who didn't have the willingness to dig deep in tough moments. Yarde was stopped that night, but gave Beterbiev everything he could handle until that stoppage.

Benavidez is looking to continue building his light heavyweight recipe after moving up from super middleweight when it was clear a showdown with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez would never materialize. Benavidez hasn't shown the same power at 175 pounds he carried at 168, but Yarde is a man who can get caught with big punches, so the chance for a stoppage is there.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:08 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Haney wins the WBO welterweight championship and is now a three-division world champion. The knockdown in the second round seemed to take the wind out of Norman's sails. Haney didn't look special from that moment on, but Norman didn't give him any reason to dig deep. After the knockdown, Haney's jab and Norman's inability to get his punches off were enough to carry him to the scorecards.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:06 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

A little battle in the clinch early led to nothing of note from either fighter. Norman landed a left hand to no real effect. Haney clinched up as Norman tried to push the issue, working to the body and head. Haney worked to the body a bit in the clinch, mostly working to just hold on and smother any Hail Mary chance for Norman. More clinching to the finish line. This will be a clear win for Haney, but it was not the most exciting performance after the second round. Still, a win matters more than anything and Haney is about to be named a three-division world champion.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 9:02 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Another fairly flat start to the round for both men, with Haney clinching as Norman bowled forward without much of an attack behind it. Haney landed a few sharp jabs late. A Haney round, but a disappointing one.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 8:57 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Haney grabbed a headlock after a missed Norman hook. Nobody landed anything meaningful in the first minute, with sveral clinches. Haney finally connected with a left hook as Norman charged forward. Haney landed a left hand, which was probably enough to win a very slow round of action 

[Nov 22, 2025 at 8:53 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Haney clinched Norman when Norman got inside, but Norman seemed content to accept the clinch. Norman threw a counter left hook and then landed a hard left hook that definitely caught Haney's attention. Norman landed a couple of body shots along the ropes before a clinch. Haney connected with a nice jab. That was a solid round for Norman.

[Nov 22, 2025 at 8:49 pm ET · Brent Brookhouse]

Norman scored with a good right hand after a slow start to the round that saw Haney stop throwing his jab. Norman's aggression was creating more meaningful moments for him in the round. Haney finally threw the jab again and connected well. The fighters traded jabs before Haney just missed with a right hand. Might have been a round Norman slightly won in the opening minute.