The Garcia vs Benn card has added another worthwhile fight, with Mark Magsayo and Andres Cortes scheduled to meet in a 10-round lightweight bout at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on September 12. It is a matchup that brings together a former world champion who has climbed through the weights and an unbeaten contender who still has something to prove.
Magsayo’s inclusion adds experience and a recognised name to the undercard. Cortes, meanwhile, arrives with a perfect record, but the latest step forward comes with a warning attached after some recent outings in which he has looked vulnerable.
Magsayo brings champion’s pedigree
Mark Magsayo is best known for what he achieved at featherweight. In January 2022, he beat Gary Russell Jr. for the WBC featherweight title, only to lose the belt six months later to Rey Vargas.
That sequence tells you a lot about where he has been in the sport. Magsayo spent most of his career at featherweight before moving through junior lightweight and eventually reaching 135, where this new assignment now sits.
He is not arriving as the fresh prospect in this contest. He is arriving as a proven fighter with championship experience, and that matters when a card already carries high-profile interest from the main event and co-feature.
Cortes keeps the unbeaten record intact, for now
Andres Cortes comes into the bout with a 25-0 record and 13 KOs, which gives the fight a clean, attractive shape on paper. He was last seen in April, when he beat Eridson Garcia on a Zuffa card.
Back on August 5, Sam Gordon of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that Cortes and Magsayo were finalizing a deal to meet on the Garcia-Benn undercard. That has now become a scheduled fight, adding another Zuffa Boxing pairing to an event already headlined by Ryan Garcia vs. Conor Benn.
There is also a strong supporting cast around it. Jai Opetaia vs. Noel Mikaelian is the cruiserweight co-feature, which gives the card depth beyond the headline act.
For Magsayo, the question is whether his experience at a higher level can still translate as he settles into lightweight. For Cortes, the challenge is more immediate: whether his unbeaten run can survive a step up against a former champion who knows how to compete under pressure.
On September 12, that is exactly the kind of test the Garcia vs Benn card needs.
