Amari Jones vs Luis Arias Preview Feb. 21st 2026
Middleweight prospect Amari Jones of Oakland, California takes on veteran Luis Arias of Milwaukee, Wisconsin in a 10-round match this Saturday, February 21st. The fight from Las Vegas, Nevada can be seen live in most nations on DAZN pay-per-view on the undercard of the Mario Barrios vs Ryan Garcia battle. The undefeated Jones, who fights out of Las Vegas, last fought in November when he stopped Shady Gamhour in the third round. Arias last saw action in November as well when he dropped a 10-round unanimous decision to Lazaro Francisco Lorenzana. It was his second straight defeat as he also lost a 10-round unanimous decision to Eric Priest last May.
Jones vs Arias Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Luis Arias +1100
- Amari Jones -2500
My Pick
Jones is just 23 years old and makes the ring walk with a perfect mark of 15-0 with 13 Ko’s. He’s boxed 54 rounds since making his pro debut in 2021 following an impressive amateur career. He’s trained by Virgil Hunter and last year he inked a multi-year promotional deal with Golden Boy. As an amateur he captured a silver medal as a welterweight AIBA World Boxing Championships in 2021 and took home a bronze medal in the same division from the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
Jones measures six-feet-tall but unfortunately there’s no official reach listed for him. He’s an orthodox boxer who has no problem switching to the southpaw stance during fights though. He obviously carries a tone of power in his arsenal as he’s stopped 13 of his 15 opponents with Kyle Lomotey going eight rounds with him in May and Tej Pratap Singh lasting the full six rounds in 2022.
Arias is now 35 years old and has boxed 186 rounds since turning pro in 2012. He also enjoyed a fine amateur career with a reported record of 140-25 and was a national champion in the middleweight division. Arias is an inch shorter than Jones at 5-foot-11 and also has an unlisted reach. He’s not known as a power puncher as just 50 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage. His last two victories have come by stoppage though but he’s won only four of his last 11 fights. He’ll enter the ring with a record of 22-6-1 with 11 Ko’s.
Arias’ first pro loss came at the hands of Daniel Jacobs in 2017 when he dropped a 12-round unanimous decision. He then fought Gabriel Rosado to a 12-round draw for the interim WBO Latino Middleweight Title in his very next fight. He went three fights without a win as his next outing in August, 2019 saw him lose on points to Luke Keeler. Arias stopped the skid with an impressive 10-round split decision win over former world champion Jarrett Hurd in June, 2021 after being dropped in the ninth round.
His next fight saw him beaten again as he dropped a 10-round split decision to Vaughn Alexander after being deducted a point in the fifth round for using his shoulder. In 2023 he was halted by Erickson Lubin in the fifth round and as mentioned he has lost his last two bouts by decision. Arias possesses good boxing skills as well as a solid chin but seems to usually fall just short when stepping up in class. His biggest wins have been against Hurd and the likes of Scott Sigmon, Jorge Silva, Tony Brinson, Dionisio Miranda and Darryl Cunningham. He won the vacant IBF USBA Middleweight title against Cunningham and defended it against Sigmon and Arif Magomedov.
Prediction…
Jones is only 23 years of age, a dull dozen years younger than Arias. He also possesses a lot more power and speed. The only edge Arias has here is experience against tougher opposition. It’s true that Jones is stepping up in class but he’s doing so against an aging opponent who hasn’t had much luck in the ring lately. Arias will give it a good shot but I think the writing’s on the wall here basically and I’m expecting Jones to get past Arias with a stoppage from an accumulation of shots being a realistic outcome.
Jones is 12 years younger with better power and skills.
Play Jones -2500 @ BetOnline.ag
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Amari Jones betting • Luis Arias betting