Magsayo Opens Garcia vs Benn Card Against Cortes

Former featherweight champion Mark Magsayo will open the main card against undefeated lightweight Andres Cortes when Ryan Garcia meets Conor Benn on September 12, Zuffa Boxing announced Wednesday.

Magsayo, who captured the featherweight belt from Gary Russell Jr in 2022 before losing it to Rey Vargas in his first defense, has won five straight since that setback. The Filipino fighter has bounced between 130 and 135 pounds, most recently stopping Feargal McCrory in his Zuffa debut, per Bad Left Hook. Cortes has built a 25-0 record by defeating a string of contenders including Xavier Martinez, Abraham Nova, and Eridson Garcia.

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Winner Positioned for Title Shot

Both fighters moved up from featherweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">super featherweight for Zuffa's lightweight-focused roster. Cortes called out Magsayo after his April win over Garcia on the same promotion.

"I've waited for a night like this my whole career. I signed with Zuffa to be on the biggest shows," Magsayo said. "Andres Cortes called me out, and I answered. He won't have his '0' after I get done with him."

🎟️ Get tickets: Buy tickets to Conor Benn vs Ryan Garcia on Ticketmaster →

The Las Vegas native Cortes told media he expects to dominate. The undercard also features 21-year-old heavyweight Da'Mazion Vanhouter against Raphael Akpejiori, who previously suffered knockout losses to Arslanbek Makhmudov and Stephan Shaw.

The Garcia-Benn event takes place at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

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• Bad Left Hook — Mark Magsayo vs Andres Cortes opens Garcia vs Benn main card