Opetaia to appear on Garcia-Benn card.
Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn are set to settle their differences this September when they throw down for the WBC welterweight title in Las Vegas.
A matchup of bad blood between Britain and America, hype for the fight has built in recent weeks following an online spat between the two fighters.
The exchange between them related to Garcia’s Mexican heritage, which Benn denied in a video message he did in Spanish (which the Englishman is fluent in).
This was around the time of the FIFA World Cup match between England and Mexico, with Garcia loudly voicing his support for the latter.
With the respective boxers possessing two of the biggest profiles in the sport, they have also been through similar controversies involving failed drug tests and returning to big-time action in spite of it.
Earlier this year, Garcia defeated Mario Barrios to finally become world champion, whereas Benn shocked many in the sport by signing with Zuffa Boxing.
While his debut under the promotion was against Regis Prograis on the Tyson Fury vs. Arslanbek Makhmudov undercard this April, he will be headlining this time against a much younger and much fresher opponent on enemy soil.
As for the co-main event, it is now being reported that it will be featuring Jai Opetaia (30-0, 23 KOs) against an opponent that is yet to be confirmed.
Former two-time IBF cruiserweight champion Opetaia was stripped of his world title when signing with Zuffa himself earlier this year, but defeated Brandon Glanton to become the inaugural Zuffa Boxing cruiserweight champion and still reigns as The Ring titlist of the 200-pound division.
While his foe on the night has not been made clear, many fans expect it to be Britain’s former WBO champion Chris Billam-Smith, who also signed with Zuffa this year.
Jai Opetaia will fight in the co-main event to the Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn card on Sept 12th in Vegas, sources told The Ring’s @MikeCoppinger.
His opponent has yet to be finalized. pic.twitter.com/OWcK9R1yCH
— InsideRingShow (@InsideRingShow) July 28, 2026
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