{
  "id": 7052550,
  "title": "Jai Opetaia destroys Noel Mikaelian, goes face-to-face with David Benavidez at Garcia-Benn undercard",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/13/jai-opetaia-destroys-noel-mikaelian-goes-face-to-face-with-david",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-13T03:32:42.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/boxing/article/jai-opetaia-destroys-noel-mikaelian-goes-face-to-face-with-david-benavidez-on-garcia-benn-undercard-033242727.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Cruiserweight fighter Jai Opetaia secured a decisive victory over Noel Mikaelian in their bout at Las Vegas' T-Mobile Arena. The event took place as part of the Ryan Garcia vs. Conor Benn undercard. Opetaia, who entered the ring appearing to have warmed up to cause damage, demonstrated his punching prowess throughout the nine-round fight. A clash of heads in the final round caused a cut below Opetaia's eye, temporarily affecting his momentum. Despite Mikaelian's championship pedigree and experience, he was unable to withstand Opetaia's relentless assault. Following the win, Opetaia advanced his professional record to 31-0, with 24 knockouts. He now sets his sights on a potential clash with unified WBA and WBO champion David Benavidez, who was present in the ring to support the fighters. Opetaia expressed respect for Benavidez and suggested that the showdown should occur on Cinco de Mayo next year, declaring that \"there can only be one monster\" in the 200-pound division.",
  "summary": "Opetaia scored a brutal ninth-round win in Saturday's co-feature, then lined up a potentially massive showdown with David Benavidez for Cinco de Mayo next year.",
  "key_points": [
    "Jai Opetaia defeats Noel Mikaelian in nine-round bout",
    "Opetaia advances record to 31-0 with 24 knockouts",
    "Sets sights on potential David Benavidez fight on Cinco de Mayo"
  ],
  "editors_take": "Jai Opetaia's dominant win over Noel Mikaelian sets him up for a potential showdown with David Benavidez, with Opetaia pushing for a Cinco de Mayo 2025 fight to settle superiority in the 200-pound division.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}