Listening to Deontay Wilder talk about his upcoming fight, you would almost think it was still 2019, and he was an unbeaten heavyweight champion warning a smaller man away from danger. Instead, the 41-year-old is acting as if Jai Opetaia made a mistake skipping a tune-up bout before their December 11 meeting on the Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua undercard in Cardiff.

When Shelly Finkel called with the terms for the ten-round heavyweight bout on Netflix, Wilder accepted quickly despite having other options. Speaking on Playbook Boxing, Wilder suggested Zuffa Boxing pushed the unbeaten cruiserweight into the deep end faster than his own camp wanted. “I’m sure that if it was up to him personally and his team, they would have went somewhere else,” said Wilder.

What makes that claim hard to take seriously is how little Wilder knew about his opponent before signing, admitting he had never heard of Opetaia and only recently watched a few highlights. Even after seeing the tape, Wilder questioned whether Opetaia’s power will carry up in weight, arguing that punches feel different in the heavyweight division.

That argument ignores where both fighters actually stand in late 2026. Since his second fight with Fury, Wilder has gone 3-4 across seven outings, suffering knockout losses to Fury and Zhilei Zhang alongside a shutout decision defeat to Joseph Parker. His only victories in the last four years came against Robert Helenius, journeyman Tyrrell Herndon, and a 42-year-old Derek Chisora, whom Wilder barely scraped past by split decision in April.

At 31, Opetaia enters at 31-0 in his physical prime, fresh off stopping former cruiserweight champion Noel Mikaelian in nine rounds in September. Facing a faded version of Wilder, whose reflexes and trigger finger have visibly slowed, gives the Australian southpaw a high-profile heavyweight debut without the risk of facing an active, elite big man. If Opetaia uses his footwork to keep Wilder turning and forces him to reset his back leg, clean openings for that right hand will be hard to find.

A warm-up against a fringe heavyweight might have let Opetaia test the extra weight, though it would have wasted valuable time when a recognizable name like Wilder was available on a massive stage. Wilder still talks like a fighter people need to be protected from, yet Opetaia is stepping into the ring against a former champion who no longer resembles the puncher he used to be. “Let’s steal the show, bro,” said Wilder.

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Tunde claims he’s never rated Jai Opetaia & Deontay Wilder might be his first real challenge! 👀🥊Tunde claims he’s never rated Jai Opetaia & Deontay Wilder might be his first real challenge! 👀🥊

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Former WBO bantamweight champion Jason “Mayhem” Moloney (30-4, 20 KOs) defeated Andres Teran (19-3, 14 KOs) by unanimous decision in the 10-round bantamweight co-main event. The judges scored it 99-91, 98-92 and 97-93 for Moloney. Teran looked to counter in the early rounds and landed some solid shots in a cagey start.

The action picked up in the middle rounds as Teran pressed forward and both fighters had their moments. Moloney dictated the pace and landed the cleaner punches as the fight wore on. Teran came into the bout after stopping previously unbeaten Floyd Diaz in six rounds. The win came in the 35-year-old Australian’s Zuffa Boxing debut.

Bruno “Brunello” Surace (27-1-2) handed Kamil Bednarek (17-1, 10 KOs) his first professional loss by unanimous decision in a 10-round super middleweight bout. The judges scored it 98-92, 97-93 and 96-94 for Surace.

It was the Frenchman’s first fight in about 18 months, following his decision loss to Jaime Munguía in their May 2025 rematch.

Bednarek pressed forward and stayed busy, but he rarely troubled Surace with his power shots. Surace landed the cleaner punches from the early rounds, countering Bednarek as he came forward. He mixed shots to the head and body and kept Bednarek from getting much out of his pressure. Surace finished strongly to close out his Zuffa Boxing debut.

Heavyweight Jakhongir “Jak Kong” Zokirov (3-0) knocked out Brandon Colantonio (8-3) at 3:00 of the first round in a scheduled six-round fight. The 6-foot-7 Uzbek prospect hurt Colantonio to the body early. Colantonio got back to his feet, but Zokirov went back to the body and forced him to take a knee. The referee deducted a point from Zokirov for landing a punch while Colantonio was down.

Zokirov kept landing heavy shots after the action resumed. Colantonio’s corner stopped the fight before the start of the second round. It was the second straight stoppage win for the 23-year-old Zokirov, who stopped Zachary Spiller in two rounds in his previous fight.

Dariial “Wolf” Kuchmenov (11-0) handed Ivan Ortiz (13-1-2) his first professional loss by split decision in an eight-round lightweight bout. Two judges scored it 77-74 and 76-75 for Kuchmenov, while the third had it 76-75 for Ortiz.

Kuchmenov used his jab to control the distance early and dropped Ortiz with a counter hook as the Mexican came forward about two minutes into the first round. It was the first knockdown of Ortiz’s career.

Ortiz began landing more regularly midway through the third and caught Kuchmenov with a hard right hand late in the fourth. Kuchmenov regained the initiative by going to the body as Ortiz began to take control. The final two rounds went back and forth, with Kuchmenov holding on to win by a point on the closest card in his favor.

Light heavyweight Rakhmatullo “Tullo” Boymatov (2-0, 2 KOs) knocked out Moro Inusah Kanla (10-2, 9 KOs) at 1:29 of the first round in a scheduled eight-round bout. Both fighters traded heavy combinations from the opening bell.

Boymatov was first to touch the canvas, but the referee ruled it a slip. Moments later, Boymatov dropped Kanla with an overhand right. Kanla got up, but Boymatov caught him with a flush left hook that ended the fight.

Kanla had entered on a six-fight knockout streak. It was the second straight first-round stoppage for the 22-year-old Uzbek prospect, who stopped Caleb Hall in his pro debut in May.

Alexander Castro (16-2, 12 KOs) upset former WBA welterweight champion Radzhab Butaev (16-3, 12 KOs) by majority decision in a 10-round middleweight bout. Two judges scored it 97-93 and 96-94 for Castro. The third had it even at 95-95.

Butaev entered as the heavy favorite in the opening bout of the Zuffa Boxing 13 prelims. The Colombian underdog was coming off a loss. Castro’s win over the former champion was his first since that defeat.

Abdulaziz Alotaibi (1-0) won his professional debut by unanimous decision over Ezra Ssali in a four-round featherweight bout on the Zuffa Boxing 13 prelims. All three judges scored it 40-35 for Alotaibi. The 24-year-old controlled the bout against the Ugandan Ssali and won every round on all three cards.

Jaime Munguía has 30 days to sign a deal with mandatory challenger Bektemir Melikuziev, and nobody watching the WBA’s circus at 168 pounds should hold their breath. For the last year, the sanctioning body has treated its own rules like optional suggestions, handing out soft exceptions while Melikuziev rots on the shelf for nearly 18 months waiting for the title shot he already earned.

ESPN‘s Salvador Rodríguez reported Saturday that the two camps have a 30 day window to reach terms before the WBA orders a purse bid with a 60 percent split for Munguía and 40 percent for Melikuziev. That threat is completely toothless, because Munguía already blew past an October deadline once and got rewarded with a lucrative voluntary stroll against Nikita Zon instead of getting stripped.

Munguía won the WBA belt back on May 2 in Las Vegas with a unanimous decision over José Armando Reséndiz. His initial mandatory period expired on August 30, and the WBA Championship Committee waited until September 21 to officially order the Melikuziev fight with an October 21 deadline. Nine days after that deadline passed without a deal, the WBA caved and let Munguía take the Zon fight in Riyadh two weeks ago.

Melikuziev got pushed aside so Munguía could collect an easy payday in Saudi Arabia, all under the promise that the Uzbek southpaw would be next. Now the 30 day clock is ticking again, and there is zero guarantee Munguía will not look for another exit ramp or drag out negotiations until a purse bid forces his hand.

Meanwhile, the rest of the super middleweight division is stuck in traffic. Diego Pacheco and Darius Fulghum meet Saturday night in Carson, California, in a WBA eliminator that feels almost pointless right now. Whoever wins that fight is walking straight into a brick wall of sanctioning body delays. Even if Munguía and Melikuziev sign contracts tomorrow, a fight date still has to be locked in for early 2027, meaning the Carson winner will be lucky to get his shot before next summer.

Nobody knows that frustration better than Fulghum. Melikuziev edged him out 114 to 112 on all three scorecards in a Las Vegas eliminator back in May 2025, and Melikuziev still has not gotten his crack at the title. If Fulghum pulls off the upset in Carson and Melikuziev somehow topples Munguía, we could see a rematch for the belt. For Pacheco, winning Saturday just puts him at the back of a very slow line.

Munguía knows what is waiting for him if he actually steps into the ring with Melikuziev. Melikuziev is a heavy handed, relentless pressure fighter who punishes the body and suffocates opponents on the inside. After going twelve rounds with Zon, Munguía cannot afford to sleepwalk through camp if this bout finally gets across the finish line.

The WBA claims its order governs the title picture after Saturday night, but until Munguía and Melikuziev are both standing in the ring, fans should keep their expectations low.