LAS VEGAS -- Jai Opetaia put together a brilliant offensive display to rout Brandon Glanton and become the inaugural Zuffa World cruiserweight champion via a unanimous decision at the Meta Apex on Sunday.
All three judges scored the fight 119-106.
Fighting out of Gold Coast, Australia, Opetaia won every round handily in his first fight on American soil but was unable to get the finish with Glanton showcasing a granite chin and exceptional punch resistance.
"It was alright," Opetaia said. "I knew Brandon was going to be tough as nails. I'm happy I got the win and enter this next chapter as the Zuffa champion."
Opetaia (30-0, 23 KOs) had little trouble beating up on a determined but severely overmatched Glanton (21-4, 18 KOs), throttling him with power shots and an uppercut that couldn't miss. The only success Glanton had was getting reprimanded by the referee and was deducted a point in rounds six and eight for holding and low blows, respectively. Opetaia was also deducted a point in Round 11 for excessive holding, but the fight was well out of hand by then.
The fight turned into a one-sided mismatch early as Opetaia whipped brutal power shots to the head and body of a pursuant Glanton. Although Glanton was getting routinely beaten to the punch, he continued to follow Opetaia but offered next to nothing offensively while eating a steady diet of rights and lefts. Opetaia added uppercuts to his offensive repertoire in Round 4 that proved to be his most effective punch for the rest of the fight.
Opetaia lit Glanton up in Round 10 with a variety of heavy punches to the head and body but his opponent displayed a sturdy chin that refused to break. Even with a wide lead on the scorecards, Opetaia pursued a finish in the final round and badly hurt Glanton with a straight left hand and combinations. But Glanton managed to survive to the final bell and will leave Las Vegas with a moral victory.
There was more drama leading up to the fight between Opetaia and the IBF than the action inside the ring. Opetaia entered the ring as IBF cruiserweight champion but may be stripped of the title after the IBF refused to sanction the fight on Friday, issuing a statement that they were misled that Zuffa's championship would be little more than an item that was "characterized as a trophy or token of recognition."
Opetaia, 30, signed with Zuffa Boxing in January with the goal to become undisputed at cruiserweight and maintained that goal in his comments after the fight.
"I'm chasing the belts," Opetaia said. "I know there's been a lot of white noise and stuff. A lot of stuff on social media, but I'm just hoping it gets worked out and we can still chase that goal. I have not lost track of it and I never have. I've been stripped once before. I've been stripped again. I'll get the belt back and I'll become undisputed."
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