Jai Opetaia Drops, Stops Jordan Thompson

Jai Opetaia (23-0, 18 KOs) made the first successful defense of his IBF cruiserweight title with a fourth round stoppage of Jordan Thompson (15-1, 12 KOs). The fight headlined a Matchroom Boxing card at the Wembley Arena in London, England. DAZN broadcasted the event live around the world (except in Australia and New Zealand where it could be seen on Fox Sports, Kayo, or Sky).

The fight began with Opetaia going to the body and landing straight lefts to the head of Thompson. Towards the end of round one, Thompson was shaken. Opetaia proceeded to unload in an attempt to get the stoppage but was unable to do so before the bell signalled the end of the round. Blood poured from the nose of Thompson as he continued to get backed up and hit clean by Opetaia.

In the third round, Thompson went to the canvas for the first time in the fight. For the remainder of the round, he was on the backfoot and was nearly stopped but was saved by the bell yet again. Although he made it to round four, Thompson went to the canvas within the first 20 seconds. The knockdown caused referee Howard Foster to wave off the bout at the 0:20 mark of the fourth round.

Opetaia post-fight comments

“This is what I do. I’m born for this shit, I live for it,” said Opetaia. “I feel like this fight night was Jordan Thompson’s fight night, you know what I mean? I feel like they made it about him. It was nothing to do with me. They put me in this small ring thinking they were going to cut me off, but that’s what happens. I’ve got good footwork, and they tried to take that away from me with this little ring.”

Opetaia also spoke about a potential future opponent in his post-fight interview.

“Who’s next? I’ve been saying it, I come here to earn respect, not disrespect. I’d love to fight (Chris Billam-Smith), I want that WBO belt around my waist.”

JAI OPETAIA.

Simply remarkable 👊#OpetaiaThompson pic.twitter.com/TJCfNzVt4q

— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) September 30, 2023

Scotney retains title against Griffa

Ellie Scotney (8-0, 0 KOs) won a unanimous decision against Laura Griffa (20-9, 1 KO) to successfully retain the IBF super bantamweight title. Scores were 100-90, 100-91, and 99-91. The win comes just over three months after Scotney won the belt with a unanimous decision over Cherneka Johnson.

Griffa adopted an aggressive approach for the fight, something Scotney used to her advantage. As Griffa came forward, she walked right into the shots of Scotney throughout the bout. Scotney’s most successful punch was the left hook which she landed consistently. Towards the end of the fight, Scotney landed almost at will but Griffa displayed a sturdy chin to remain standing.

Ellie Scotney’s been busy in this one 👊#OpetaiaThompson | Live on DAZN pic.twitter.com/pJiw146cGn

— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) September 30, 2023

A tweet from Matchroom Boxing suggested that unifications were on the horizon for Scotney. The other champions at super bantamweight are Yamileth Mercado (WBC), Mayerlin Rivas (WBA) and Segolene Lefebvre (WBO).

Opetaia vs. Thompson undercard results

Cheavon Clarke (7-0, 5 KOs) won a unanimous decision against Vasil Ducar (14-7-2, 10 KOs) in a cruiserweight clash. Scores were 99-91 (x2) and 98-92.

Jimmy Sains (1-0, 1 KO) won his professional debut against Bartlomiej Stryczek (1-1, 0 KOs) via third round technical stoppage. At the 1:23 mark, referee Bob Williams stepped in to wave off the middleweight fight.

Rhiannon Dixon (9-0, 1 KO) won a unanimous decision against Katharina Thanderz (16-2, 2 KOs) to become the EBU European lightweight champion. All judges saw scored the fight 100-90.

George Liddard (5-0, 3 KOs) won a six-round points decision against Peter Kramer (14-9-3, 10 KOs) in a middleweight clash. Referee Michael Alexander scored it 60-54.

Ibraheem Sulaimaan (2-0, 1 KO) won a four-round points decision against Joshua Ocampo (8-16-5, 6 KOs) in a lightweight bout. Referee Williams scored the contest 40-36.

Shannon Ryan (6-0, 0 KOs) won an eight-round points decision against Xenia Jorneac (11-7, 3 KOs) in a super flyweight clash. Referee Alexander had it 80-72.

Maisey Rose Courtney (5-0, 0 KOs) won a six-round points decision against Martina Bernile (5-3-1, 1 KO) in a flyweight bout. Referee Williams had it 58-56.