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Add FightsATW on GoogleLAS VEGAS- Jai Opetaia knew he needed a win on Saturday night, and as a result, he secured a ninth-round TKO over Noel Mikaelian (28-4, 12 KOs) to retain his Ring and Zuffa cruiserweight titles, with the WBC decision to be made on Monday.
After the fight, Opetaia (31-0, 24 KOs) had one name on his mind: David Benavidez, who was sitting ringside. Opetaia invited Benavidez to the ring, and they called for a May 2027 fight, drawing a loud roar from the crowd.
https://x.com/Zuffa_Boxing/status/2098970430115844217?s=20
In the opening round, Opetaia came out firing with his 1-2 combinations down the middle. At times, the combinations forced Mikaelian to stutter-step back. Mikaelian did land a hard right hand early, which caught Opetaia’s attention.
Mikaelian used his feet in the second round to circle around Opetaia without throwing many punches. Opetaia kept waiting and waiting until he unleashed a few combinations toward the end of the round. After a high-paced first round, the second was more tactical.
In the third round, Mikaelian landed hard, straight right hands that caught Opetaia’s attention. There was a ton of holding from both guys, but Mikaelian’s right hand was the story of the round.
Opetaia stepped it up in the fourth round after a fairly inactive third. He landed left hooks and overhand lefts flush on Mikaelian’s chin. Although he took them well, Mikaelian began to feel the effects of the left hand.
There was more holding in the fifth round, as both fighters would throw a punch or two and then hold. They each landed a few clean shots, but the holding smothered any damage those punches caused.
No big action in the sixth, but in the seventh round, Mikaelian landed an overhand right that rocked Opetaia, causing a delayed reaction as he walked back on shaky legs. Opetaia would finish the round by landing a big left hook seconds before the end of the round.
Opetaia had another strong round in the eighth as it appeared Mikaelian was slowing down. Although Mikaelian was still landing his right hand here and there, Opetaia’s work throughout the round carried more weight. In the ninth round, Opetaia landed two sequences of right and left hooks to send Mikaelian to the ropes. The referee asked Mikaelian if he wanted to continue after the count, and he waved the fight off.
https://x.com/Zuffa_Boxing/status/2098968251292385371?s=20
Although it wasn’t a clean fight, Opetaia got the stoppage he was looking for.
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Da’Mazion Vanhouter (13-0, 10 KOs) made quick work of Raphael Akpejiori (19-4, 18 KOs), scoring a devastating first-round knockout.
Andres Cortes (26-0, 13 KOs) outworked Mark Magsayo (29-3, 19 KOs) en route to a unanimous decision victory. All three judges had it 97-93 for Cortes, as Magsayo did not look his best on this night.
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