Callum Walsh kicked off the Zuffa Boxing era with a unanimous decision against Carlos Ocampo on Friday at Meta Apex in Las Vegas.

Walsh (16-0, 11 KOs) was expected to crush the chinny Ocampo (38-4, 26 KOs) and score a stoppage, but a rough and rugged version of the Mexican contender showed up and lasted 10 rounds in their middleweight contest.

Walsh was swinging for the fences for most of the fight and rarely relied on the jab as he outlanded Ocampo 123-88 while netting scores of 98-90, 98-90, 97-91.

"I landed some good shots. I was very surprised that I didn't put him down," Walsh said during his post-fight press conference. "I think I got the best version of him tonight."

Ocampo had been stopped twice in the first round by Errol Spence in 2018 and Tim Tszyu in 2023 and went 12 rounds in a unanimous decision loss against Sebastian Fundora in 2022.

"I still wasn't too happy with the performance," said Walsh, who was making his 160-pound debut with new coach Marvin Somodio. "But he's a solid veteran who's only been beaten by the best of them.

"I think I had a shutout, really. There were a few times where I got caught weird. He was very awkward. He was doing weird things where I didn't know what to do. It was a bit tougher than I expected. He had a good chin and he was a good opponent."

Dana White, Zuffa Boxing and UFC frontman, said Walsh shouldn't be so hard on himself.

“He wants to knock everybody out, and I [told him] 'you can't knock everyone out.' It's not how the game works,” said White. “But I love that about him. I don't know if he threw a jab. He was trying to knock him out the entire night. He fought a great fight against a tough guy with an unbelievable chin. He went 10 rounds, and it's part of the growing and learning process."

The head-hunting Walsh joked that he was ready to fight again next weekend for Zuffa Boxing 2.

“As long as I get the win, I am grateful for the experience and opportunity,” said Walsh. “People forget, I'm only 24 years old and I am fighting grown men. I am going to get stronger and better with each fight. I just want to keep fighting, keep winning, and keep getting paid.”