SportsLine combat expert Josh Nagel just locked in his David Benavidez vs. Gilberto Ramirez cruiserweight fight on Saturday from Las Vegas
By Daniel Kohn May 1, 2026 at 9:19 am ET • 4 min read 
Imagn Images Gilberto Ramirez defends his WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles Saturday against two-division champion David Benavidez in a 12-round boxing main event. The main Benavidez vs. Ramirez fight card is set for 8 p.m. ET from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Benavidez is a -390 betting favorite (wager $390 to win $100), while Ramirez is priced at +290 (wager $100 to win $300) in the latest boxing odds for David Benavidez vs. Gilberto Ramirez from DraftKings Sportsbook. The over/under for total rounds completed is 10.5, with the Over favored at -360.
Ramirez defeated Yuniel Dorticos by unanimous decision last June to retain his WBA (Super) and WBO cruiserweight titles. Benavidez is coming off a seven-round TKO win over Anthony Yarde this past November. Before locking in your David Benavidez vs. Gilberto Ramirez picks, make sure you see the Ramirez vs. Benavidez predictions and betting advice from SportsLine combat expert Josh Nagel.
Nagel, who is the combat sports editor for SportsLine, is an experienced and successful boxing analyst with decades of experience. He is coming off a massively profitable 2025 campaign. One of his biggest winners was calling Terence Crawford (+140) against Canelo Alvarez in their September mega fight, while also correctly advising SportsLine members to take Crawford specifically by decision (+220).
His other notable 2025 winners include calling Dimitry Bivol (+110) to pull the slight upset of Artur Beterbiev in their February rematch. In April, he correctly called Jarron Ennis to beat Eimantas Stanionis by KO (+155) while also correctly predicting the Under 10.5 rounds (+165). He also correctly predicted Jake Paul by decision (-110) against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June. He kept his hot streak going by recommending Katie Taylor (+170) against Amanda Serrano in their trilogy showdown in July. Anyone who has followed Nagel's boxing picks could hace seen huge returns.
Now, with the Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez fight card approaching, Nagel has studied the matchup from every angle and revealed his top betting picks and best bets. Head to SportsLine to see them.
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Ramirez vs. Benavidez preview
Ramirez, 34, has been dominant in his long boxing career. In 49 fights since turning pro in 2009, he has registered 48 wins and one loss. Thirty of his wins have been by knockout. His lone loss was by unanimous decision against Dmitry Bivol on Nov. 5, 2022, for the WBA (Super) light heavyweight title.
He rebounded with a unanimous decision win over Joe Smith Jr. in October 2023, before winning by unanimous decision over Arsen Goulamirian for the WBA (Super) cruiserweight title on March 30, 2024. He has fought twice since then to defend his title, including a win over Chris Billam-Smith in November 2024 to add the WBO cruiserweight title to his resume. He is the first boxer from Mexico to win a major world title in those weight classes. Check out SportsLine to see Nagel's picks and analysis.
Benavidez, 29, is also from Mexico and has previously held the WBC super middleweight title twice between 2017 and 2020. Since turning pro in 2013, he has rattled off 31 career wins, including 25 by knockout. He won the vacant NABF junior light heavyweight title with a TKO win over Rollin Williams on April 25, 2015. He later won the vacant WBC super middleweight title with a split decision win over Ronald Gavril on Sept. 8, 2017.
On Sept. 28, 2019, he won the WBC super middleweight crown. He added the WBC interim super middleweight title to his resume in 2022, before adding the vacant WBC interim light heavyweight crown in 2024. As an amateur, he compiled a 15-0 record. You can only see Nagel's picks and analysis at SportsLine.
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Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez predictions
One Ramirez vs. Benavidez pick for Nagel recommendsL He's going Over on total rounds. The current line is 10.5 total rounds, with the Over priced at -360 and the Under returning +250. Each of Ramirez's last five fights have gone the distance. Meanwhile, three of Benavidez's last five fights have gone to completion. Nagel suggests that this fight will be competitive enough to go deep due to the skill of both fighters and the familiarity between them.
"Benavidez and Ramirez have some familiarity because they were briefly sparring partners in the early portion of the cruiserweight champion's career," Nagel told SportsLine. "Though Ramirez is far from a household name to mainstream boxing fans, the Mexico native has had a decorated career and likely is more of a threat to Benavidez than the odds suggest. He is a rangy southpaw with a slick lead jab and tends to drown his opponents with volume. His lone career defeat came at light heavyweight to Bivol, who memorably upset Alvarez in May 2022 and whose only loss came via majority decision to Beterbiev, a defeat he has since avenged." See Nagel's other picks at SportsLine.
How to make Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez picks
Nagel has locked in two other picks, including a money-line play, and a confident method of victory bet. He's sharing them only at SportsLine.
Who wins Ramirez vs. Benavidez, and which method of victory prop presents massive value? Visit SportsLine now to see Josh Nagel's best bets for the Saturday, May 2, cruiserweight bout, all from the combat sports specialist who has covered the sport for more than 20 years, and find out.
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