Jai Opetaia celebrated his victory on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena over WBC cruiserweight champion Noel Mikaelian in the boxing ring afterward.
Alongside unified champion David Benavidez.
Opetaia protected his lineal 200-pound throne by stopping the 35-year-old Armenian halfway through the ninth round (1:30) of the co-feature to WBC welterweight champion Ryan Garcia’s title defense against Conor Benn. The heavy-handed Samoan southpaw, 31 and Australian, softened Mikaelian’s body and stunned him with a combo that forced referee Harvey Dock to halt the bout.
Afterward, he welcomed Benavidez, the WBA and WBO 200-pound champion, into the ring for a respectful faceoff — during which they agreed to fight. An undefeated three-division champion, Benavidez took his titles off Gilberto Ramirez on Cinco de Mayo weekend at T-Mobile Arena with a sixth-round stoppage.
“I respect him. He’s done a lot for the sport,” Opetaia told interviewer Max Kellerman about a bout with Benavidez to roars from the crowd.
“What better fight to make.”
There might not be a better matchup for boxing than Opetaia (31-0, 24 knockouts) and Benavidez, who share a lust for brutality but tend to deploy it differently. Opetaia’s footwork and feints optimize his vaunted left hand while Benavidez’s pressure, speed and combination punching break his opponents.
Opetaia was rocked by a right hand from Mikaelian (28-4, 12 KOs) midway through the seventh round, but regrouped in the eighth to rip apart his body and set the stage for the ninth-round stoppage.
And perhaps a bout with Benavidez.
“Let’s do it right here, Cinco de Mayo next year. This is a great fighter right here,” Benavidez said to garner more cheers. “That’s why I respect this man so much. He’s the boogeyman of the division. … He’s a great fighter. We’re going to give the fans a great fight.”
Setting the stage for Opetaia’s win was heavyweight prospect Da’Mamazion Vanhouter (13-0, 10 KOs) with an uncompetitive first-round stoppage over Nigerian veteran Raphael Akpejiori. Vanhouter, 21, of St. Petersburg, Florida — who debuted professionally at 154 pounds — steamrolled the 35-year-old (19-4, 18 KOs) with speed and power, dropping him twice to force the stoppage from referee Robert Hoyle at the 1:58 mark.
Said Vanhouter, a victor by first-round stoppage in six of his last seven fights and a -2000 favorite against Akpejiori, loser of three of his last four fights: “If I didn’t want to be the best, I wouldn’t be here. … Onto the next. … I want to go rounds. If they give me rounds, it’s good for me. Gives me experience.”
He looks the part of a blue-chip prospect but needs resistance to bolster his development.
In the main card’s opener, Las Vegas native Andres Cortes (26-0, 13 KOs) pressured and outworked former WBC featherweight champion Mark Magsayo (29-3, 19 KOs) for a unanimous 97-93 win at lightweight. Cortes, 29, overwhelmed the 31-year-old Filipino — controlling the pace and tempo of the fight.
He called for a fight in his post-fight interview with Zuffa stablemate and former WBA super lightweight champion Jose Valenzuela.
Contact Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on X.
