It was an action-packed weekend for combat sports, with something for every taste in the ring. In the mixed martial arts (MMA) scene UFC 4 night went down in Glendale, Arizona, which saw Jean Silva to present Jose Miguel Delgado by submitting the third round in the header (highlights).
Elsewhere on the map Brandon Moreno defeated Joseph Morales by split decision, however Tommy McMillen defeated Marwan Rahiki by unanimous decision after a fighting back and forth (see what could be next for them here).
About 280 miles down the road, Dana White and Co. were busy organizing another event in Las Vegas, Nevada, this time with a major title fight in the world of boxing featuring the Zuffa star. Conor Bennchallenging Ryan Garcia for his WBC lightweight belt.
Unfortunately for “The Destroyer”, it was he who was destroyed as “King Ry”. knocked him out in the second round. Another Zuffa fighter was in action in the co-main event Jai Opetaia successfully protected his Zuffa and A ring cruiserweight titles against the WBC champion, Noel Mikaelian.
It was Garcia’s first defense since winning the belt by submission earlier this year Mario Barrios. The win further cemented his status as one of the faces of the sport as he is not afraid to take on any and all challengers. In fact, starting in 2023, he faces Conor Benn, Mario Barrios, Rolly Romero, Devin Haney and Gervonta Davis.
And Garcia isn’t about to slow down a bit with tough challenges, as we quickly called for a fight against the king of the WBA super flyweight division, Teofimo Lopez. And while the two men exchanged warm greetings before the fight, things got a little tense after Lopez was banned from the ring (see it here). Still, it looks like this is the fight for the next one, and it’s going to be a great one. If Garcia defeats Lopez, his stock will get a huge boost and possibly set up an even bigger fight Shakur Stevenson.
As for Opetaia, he took another big step in his quest to become a unified cruiserweight champion by winning the vacant regular WBA belt. Stopping Mikaelian in the 9th round. Later, he took time to call his next challenge, and it was a big challenge. Indeed, Opetaia challenged the current WBA super cruiserweight and WBO champion, David Benavidez.
Unlike Lopez, Benavidez was not banned from entering the ring – regardless Dana White’s demand To the “Monster of Mexico” not to enter. Two men gave a polite handshake and looked away and agreed that a mega title unification match between them would be what was needed. Additionally, they agreed on Cinco de Mayo weekend in 2027 in Las Vegas.
Of course, there is a lot of politics involved in boxing, and with Opetaia being signed to Zuffa, that makes things even more complicated. But as we witnessed last weekend with Garcia and Benn, it can be done. It has long been said that Benavidez is the most avoided fighter in boxing today. In fact, the “Monster of Mexico” claimed. Canelo Alvarez has surrendered him several timesso he took the time to give Opetaia credit for challenging him to fight.
If these two mega games were to be made, how do you think they would turn out?
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