Jai Opetaia made the move to Zuffa Boxing in order to grow his profile and land in the biggest possible fights, and he is now close to finalising what will be his second appearance of 2026.
Opetaia became Zuffa’s first marquee signing in January, but the Australian southpaw was then stripped of his IBF cruiserweight world title.
The 31-year-old now reigns as the Zuffa Boxing cruiserweight champion – having claimed the inaugural belt with a win over Brandon Glanton on his promotional debut – and has been linked to a defence of that title against Chris Billam-Smith.
Review Journal’s Sam Gordon is now reporting that Opetaia will fight on September 12 on the recently announced blockbuster event headlined by Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn.
Cruiserweight king Jai Opetaia is slated to fight on the undercard of Ryan Garcia’s WBC welterweight title defense against Conor Benn at T-Mobile Arena, per source. Opponent not yet finalized for the undefeated 200-pounder.
— Sam Gordon (@BySamGordon) July 15, 2026
“Cruiserweight king Jai Opetaia is slated to fight on the undercard of Ryan Garcia’s WBC welterweight title defence against Conor Benn at T-Mobile Arena, per source. Opponent not yet finalized for the undefeated 200-pounder.”
While Billam-Smith may be an option, that all-Zuffa cruiserweight bout has the potential to headline its own card. Another option is Germany’s Robin Sirwan Safar, due to his continuous call-outs and the fact that he is signed to Golden Boy Promotions, who are involved in the event.
Opetaia has maintained that his goal is to become undisputed at cruiserweight even after losing his IBF belt. To do so, he will have to fight WBO and WBA champion David Benavidez, who is expected to announce a unification with WBC champion Noel Mikaelian soon.
