Jai Opetaia looks to strengthen his claim as the leading cruiserweight in the world tonight when he faces WBC champion Noel Mikaelian in a major title clash at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The unbeaten Australian puts his Ring and Zuffa Boxing cruiserweight titles on the line against Mikaelian, with the contest serving as the chief support to Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn. Opetaia enters with a perfect 30-0 record and has made clear that his long-term ambition remains to become undisputed before eventually moving up to heavyweight.

Mikaelian represents another significant obstacle in that pursuit. The experienced champion had previously been ordered to face David Benavidez but instead moved forward with the Opetaia fight, setting up one of the most significant cruiserweight contests of the year. Though many assumed the WBC would strip the Armenian, President Mauricio Sulaiman says there will be no decision made until next week.

Victory would move the winner closer to undisputed status and a unification clash with Benavidez.

Boxing News will provide live round-by-round scoring for the fight below.

Jai Opetaia vs Noel Mikaelian live scorecard

This is a Boxing News live scorecard and not the official score from the judges.

Jai Opetaia vs Noel Mikaelian fight result

Obadiah TKO 9.A solid performance from Opetaia, who becomes the first man to stop Mikaelian. The Armenian kept it interesting at points – and even hurt Opetaia in the seventh – but was ultimately ground down by the Aussie’s power and stopped on his feet in the ninth round after four or five clean shots to the head. Benavidez was watching ringside and stepped into the ring post-fight. He presents a must-watch match-up next for three of the four belts in the division, assuming Opetaia is allowed to now claim the WBC title.

LIVE COVERAGE

World Boxing News provides live results and updates from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas as Ryan Garcia faces Conor Benn for the WBC welterweight title.

Garcia and Benn meet over 12 rounds in the main event, while Jai Opetaia faces Noel Mikaelian in a 12-round cruiserweight clash on the co-feature.

The card also features Mark Magsayo against Andres Cortes, while former unified super lightweight champion Jose Carlos Ramirez takes on Alexis Rocha.

WBN provides live results and updates from every bout as they happen, plus selected scorecards.

Scorecards:

Ryan Garcia vs. Conor Benn
Jai Obadiah vs. Noel Michaelian
Mark Magsayo vs. Andres Cortes
Da’Mazion Vanhouter vs. Raphael Akpejiori
Jose Ramirez vs. Alexis Rocha

Results

All times are local.

15:32

Jose Ramirez and Alexis Rocha went the distance in Las Vegas, with Rocha taking a unanimous decision despite WBN scoring the fight 95-94 for Ramirez.

WBN had Ramirez winning six of the ten rounds, but a 10-8 ninth round for Rocha tightened the scorecard considerably.

The official judges saw a far wider fight, awarding Rocha the victory by scores of 98-91, 98-91 and 97-92.

14:41

Ryan Garcia’s younger brother Sean Garcia opened the prelims with a six-round points victory over Abraham Morales.

Garcia looked slick at times and scored a third-round knockdown before a point deduction for excessive holding in round five effectively wiped out the advantage.

Garcia remained in control and took the decision 58-54 twice, while judge Patricia Morse Jarman returned an unfathomable 56-56 card.

14:11

Sean Garcia enters the ring for the first bout of the night.

Remaining Bouts

Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn — 12 rounds, welterweight

Jai Opetaia vs Norair Mikaeljan — 12 rounds, cruiserweight

Mark Magsayo vs Andres Cortes — 10 rounds, lightweight

Da’Mazion Vanhouter vs Raphael Akpejiori — 8 rounds, heavyweight

Vlad Panin vs Dakota Linger — 6 rounds, welterweight

Abel Gonzalez vs Raul Salomon — 8 rounds, super middleweight

Oswaldo Molina vs. Pablo Rubio Jr. — 6 rounds, super featherweight

TV Coverage

The prelims begin at 5 p.m. ET, with the main card starting at 8 p.m. ET live on Paramount+.

Follow WBN’s live boxing coverage throughout the event.

About the Author

Phil Jay is the Editor-in-Chief of World Boxing News (WBN), a BWAA-acknowledged boxing news website founded in 2010. A veteran boxing reporter with 16 years of experience, he has interviewed world champions, broken international exclusives, and reported ringside from major events. His work is published worldwide through WBN and distributed on platforms including Apple News.

Read Phil Jay’s full bio and latest stories.