Opetaia vs Thompson Undercard CONFIRMED

• Jai Opetaia Makes UK Debut On Sep 30 At London’s OVO Wembley
• Big Opportunity For Unbeaten Jordan Thompson To Pull Off The Upset
• Ellie Scotney Defends World Title On Opetaia vs Thompson Undercard

THE #1 CRUISERWEIGHT Jai Opetaia (22-0 17 KOs) will make the first defence of his IBF and Ring Magazine Cruiserweight World Titles against Jordan Thompson (15-0, 12 KOs) at the OVO Arena Wembley on Saturday, September 30 live on DAZN.

Aussie southpaw Opetaia dethroned Cruiserweight king Mairis Briedis on home turf with an outstanding display in Queensland, Australia in July 2022, outboxing the Latvian with a show of skill mixed with guts after breaking his jaw in both the second and final rounds.

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Fourteen months on and after two frustrating pull-outs Opetaia returns to action in London putting his titles on the line against Manchester’s undefeated contender Thompson.

The 6′ 7″ powerhouse emerged as a surprise option for the defence considering his notable fights to date have come at domestic level against Vasil Ducar and Luke Watkins.

Opetaia vs Thompson Undercard

Opetaia vs Thompson Main Card

Ellie Scotney vs Laura Soledad Griffa

Catford’s 122lbs queen Ellie Scotney (7-0) returns to the arena where she was crowned IBF World Champion in June, comfortably outpointing Australia’s former champion Cherneka Johnson on the undercard of Sunny Edwards’ shutout points win over Andres Campos.
 
Argentina’s Laura Soledad Griffa (20-8, 1 KO) gets her second shot at the IBF Super-Bantamweight after falling short in her challenge against Marcela Eliana Acuna in August 2018.

‘La Joya’, who fights out of Pehuajo in Buenos Aires, has also challenged for the IBO Super-Bantamweight and Featherweight Titles and has won both of her fights in 2023.

Cheavon Clarke vs Vasil Ducar

Dangerous Gravesend Cruiserweight Cheavon Clarke (6-0, 5 KOs) gets his first title shot – taking on former Chris Billam-Smith and Jordan Thompson opponent Vasil Ducar (14-6-2, 10 KOs) for the vacant IBF International Title.

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Clarke has proved all-exciting in his professional career delivering brilliant performances and shining in his biggest test to date against David Jamieson last time out.

Ducar almost beat Thompson when they clashed last Summer and is a big step up for the 2020 Olympian, but a win here should put him in good stead for a potential fight against the winner of Mikael Lawal vs Isaac Chamberlain for the British title – a belt Clarke is mandatory for.

Rhiannon Dixon vs Katherina Thanderz

Warrington’s Rhiannon Dixon (8-0, 1 KO) meets Norway’s World Title challenger Katherina Thanderz (16-1, 2 KOs) for the vacant EBU European Lightweight crown.  

Thanderz fell short in her challenge of Terri Harper almost three years ago, succumbing to a 9th-round stoppage at the hands of the now 154-pound champion.

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Dixon’s breakout fight came earlier this year when she recorded a first career stoppage against the undefeated Vicky Wilkinson to win the Commonwealth crown.

Opetaia vs Thompson Before The Bell

Billericay Middleweight George Liddard (4-0, 3 KOs) and Eltham Flyweight Maiseyrose Courtney (4-0) have a quick turnaround after picking up wins on the Joshua vs. Helenius undercard at The O2 in London in August.

Liddard meets Peter Kramer (14-8-3) who shared the ring with Josh Kelly last year whilst Courtney faces former European champ Martina Bernile (5-2-1).

Watford Super-Flyweight Shannon Ryan (5-0) fights for the sixth time as a pro in a second eight-rounder taking on Xenia Jorneac (11-6).

Tony Sims-trained Middleweight Jimmy Sains makes his professional debut against the 1-0 Bartlomiej Stryczek.

Jaykae-backed Ibraheem Sulaimaan (1-0) gets a second career outing after an impressive first-round stoppage in Birmingham. Veteran Joshua Ocampo (8-15-5) will hope to extend him more than the one round he saw in August.

By Darshan Desai