The Ring IV Riyadh: Night of Champions Recap

Last updated: 22 October 2026. On Saturday, 22 November 2025, Riyadh staged a made-for-history fight night: The Ring IV: Night of the Champions at the ANB Arena. Four world titles were on the line, with elite names in two weight classes, at a venue that had become the sport’s most ambitious stage. For viewers who had watched the Middle East reshape heavyweight boxing, this was the night that brought the same energy to the lighter divisions.

Saudi Arabia’s capital did not just host; it curated a statement card. The mix was deliberate: an undefeated WBC champion defending at 175, a former undisputed lightweight great hunting a belt at 147, a high-stakes lightweight title fight between unbeaten prospects, and a super-flyweight showdown with pound-for-pound implications. It was the kind of line-up that would have headlined four separate shows in the old model. Riyadh packaged it into one.

Four Title Fights, One Arena: Benavidez vs Yarde

The main event pitted David Benavidez against Anthony Yarde for the WBC light-heavyweight title. Benavidez had arrived at 175 with intent, and he brought that crisp, stalking style up a division as champion. Yarde was a live puncher with one-punch rescue power and championship miles from a brutal night with Artur Beterbiev. It was skill against menace, youth against muscle memory at world level.

Devin Haney vs Brian Norman Jr.

Two fights down the running order was a star turn at welterweight: Devin Haney vs Brian Norman Jr. for the WBO title. Haney’s resume at 135 had made him a chess master in 8-ounce gloves. At 147, he was chasing a third division while testing that style against a puncher who did not wait for his chances.

Norman Jr. was unbeaten, rugged, and increasingly vocal about being overlooked. A win on this stage would have brought a belt and a new lane in a packed division.

Abdullah Mason vs Sam Noakes

The lightweight belt scenario was compelling for different reasons. Abdullah Mason vs Sam Noakes came with the intrigue of a vacant WBO title and two unbeaten streaks colliding. Mason’s southpaw rhythm and shot selection marked him as a fast-tracked blue-chip. Noakes was a pressure engine with honest power who forced pace and mistakes. It was prospect vs prospect, with a world title on the line for the winner.

Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez vs Fernando Martinez

Then there was the fight purists circled: Jesse Bam Rodriguez vs Fernando Martinez at 115 pounds. Rodriguez was the sport’s smooth operator at super-fly, building a case on craft, timing, and big-fight temperament. Martinez was relentless volume with champion’s grit. Multiple belts and The Ring championship were in play.

Every belt mattered here. WBC light-heavyweight gold came with lineage and a path to the Beterbiev-Bivol era’s aftershocks. The WBO welterweight title opened doors in a division where matchups define legacies. Lightweight’s WBO strap had historically unified careers across the four-belt era, and super-fly unifications had produced classics for a decade. Riyadh was not just stacking names; it was stacking consequences.

Riyadh Season & the Rise of Saudi Boxing

To understand why this card existed, you needed the ecosystem around it. Riyadh Season had become a global entertainment engine, fusing premium sport with destination programming across Boulevard City and beyond.

The General Entertainment Authority (GEA) had made boxing a tent-pole, pairing legacy promoters with deep local infrastructure and a broadcast pipeline through DAZN and international partners. The result was frequency, scale, and cards with multiple title fights as a baseline, not an exception.

The ANB Arena, formerly The Venue, was part of that story. It was a modern bowl with sightlines and production built for television first, in-seat spectacle second. Viewers felt the show in the light, sound, and pace; the broadcast team got clean visuals; and fighters got the kind of walk-in theatre that frames careers. That combination had made Riyadh a reliable launchpad for marquee nights across the calendar.

Fight Card Breakdown

David Benavidez vs Anthony Yarde (WBC, 175)

Benavidez’s edge was command. He knew where exchanges ended before they started, and he punished detours with counters and body-work. If there was a question, it was about sustained resistance against a big puncher in a division of natural thumpers.

Yarde’s key was turbulence: make it ragged, change rhythms, and test whether the champion’s gas and chin were truly 175-proof. A disciplined Benavidez would win rounds and momentum; an uncoiled Yarde would make all of that theoretical.

Haney vs Norman Jr (WBO, 147)

Haney’s feet and jab were still elite. At 147 he had to convert control into enough damage to keep a puncher honest. Norman Jr. was a timing hunter who liked to step across lines and throw through hands. If Haney set range and tempo, that was his route to control the fight.

If Norman Jr. cracked the pocket in the back half, he had the chance to turn it into the kind of welterweight drama that unsettles plans. Either way, the winner was set to emerge with meaningful leverage at 147.

Mason vs Noakes (Vacant WBO, 135)

It read as a style test more than a name test. Mason’s southpaw angles and shot variety rewarded patience; Noakes punished it. Mason was expected to probe early and look for the left-hand lanes. Noakes was expected to step to him and pile up body shots that made round nine feel like round thirteen. Early chess, late fire. A belt and future unification lanes awaited the winner.

Rodriguez vs Martinez (Super-fly unification)

Rodriguez was the cleaner counter-puncher with better exits; Martinez was the grinder who made exits expensive. The question was volume: could Rodriguez make Martinez reset often enough to mute the scorecards? If not, a late-round surge from the Argentine could have tilted momentum.

Skilled scrambles, mid-ring pivots, and a scoreline that rewarded ring generalship as much as landed leather were expected on the night.

Underneath those headliners, the undercard was made up of contender showcases and regional interest fights. The promotional coalition, Queensberry with co-promoters including Top Rank, Matchroom and others, had used these Riyadh cards to spotlight next-up talent in TV-friendly pairings.

As final undercard announcements dropped, a heavyweight attraction or a local star in a step-up slot was tipped to anchor the arena’s early crowd.

The Event Has Ended

Tickets are no longer available for this event, because The Ring IV took place on 22 November 2025. This recap page does not sell tickets and contains no ticket offers.

This section was part of the original ticket preview. It has been removed from this recap, because the event has already taken place.

How the Event Was Shown

The event was shown on DAZN, with regional rights varying by market. U.S. listings and tracker pages identified DAZN as the broadcaster; fans in South Asia and the Middle East were directed to their local DAZN apps or carrier partners for confirmation and start times.

Some reports had suggested shifts away from traditional PPV pricing for Riyadh Season cards, while other coverage had referenced PPV pricing in specific territories.

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Time-zone note: Riyadh is UTC+03:00. The main card was an evening card in Riyadh, which placed the U.S. afternoon window around 12:00 p.m. ET in the listings at the time.

Pakistan viewers (UTC+05:00) faced a late-evening start rolling into the night.

What It Meant for Boxing’s Future

Riyadh’s super-cards changed the incentives. When four title fights landed in one arena, matchmakers could tell bigger stories and fans got more stakes in a single night. The broadcast piece mattered too.

If subscription access kept supplanting traditional PPV for these shows, the audience could widen and the conversation could shift from one-off buys to season-long engagement. That had been a stated ambition around Riyadh Season and DAZN, and even the debate about PPV vs subscription showed where the wind was blowing.

There was also a geographic recalibration. Las Vegas, London, and Tokyo still ruled, but Riyadh now competed for the year’s defining nights, not just one or two. That created cross-promotional space, with Top Rank fighters on Queensberry shows and Matchroom rivals sharing run-of-show, and reduced the politics that often stalled unifications elsewhere.

Fan Experience: From Riyadh City to the Ring

Getting there: The ANB Arena sat within Riyadh’s entertainment grid with direct access from the main boulevards. Ride-share queues and designated drop-off points were signposted during fight week. Fans were advised to build in time for security and fan-zone stops, because the presentation around these cards was part of the night.

Inside the arena: Production was the show. Big-screen shoulder programming, clean audio, and walkouts that felt like mini-concerts were part of the experience.

The bowl’s angles kept the ring in view even from higher rows; corner-team details and sound were clearest from lower-bowl sides near neutral corners. Concessions were cashless, and QR-coded entry was scanned at multiple gates to reduce bottlenecks.

Around town: Visitors who travelled in found the Boulevard City area stacked dining and entertainment within a short cab ride. International visitors were advised to review entry requirements and local customs ahead of time; dress codes were relaxed in event zones, but smart casual kept visitors comfortable and welcome.

For those who turned it into a weekend, Riyadh Season’s schedule usually offered concerts, exhibitions, and sport the night before or after, making a two-day itinerary easy to fill.

Night of the Champions, Night of Change

The Ring IV was not a novelty. It was the emerging template: deep cards, global distribution, and a venue designed to make prizefighting feel big again.

Benavidez-Yarde had danger written into every exchange; Haney-Norman Jr. had the potential to redraw the welterweight map; Mason-Noakes was set to crown a new champion; Rodriguez-Martinez was set to decide a pound-for-pound argument at 115. Put together, it was a night that advanced storylines across four divisions in one sitting.

For Riyadh, it was another step in a broader sports project. For boxing, it was proof that when the calendar cooperated and the money was organised, fans got nights with real stakes stacked end-to-end. Night of the Champions was billed as exactly that.