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Joao Fonseca Wins MGM Slam Exhibition in Las Vegas

Originally posted on Last Word On Sports | By Steen Kirby | Last updated Mar 2, 2026 12:54 AM ET

Exhibition tennis is more frequently played during the off-season, but this weekend saw the MGM Slam in Las Vegas at T-Mobile Arena, a warm-up for the sunshine double ATP Masters tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami for a number of top players.

Joao Fonseca Wins MGM Slam

The MGM Slam in Las Vegas featured eight different ATP players participating in 10 point tiebreak matches. American players Taylor Fritz and Reilly Opelka were semifinalists, as Fritz defeated Paul 10-3, and Opelka defeated Casper Ruud 10-8 in the quarterfinals. Fonseca won 10-6 over Gael Monfils, while Alexander Bublik won 10-8 over Nick Kyrgios.

Opelka’s serve put him into the final, 10-6 over Fritz, while Fonseca dominated Bublik 10-3, before winning the three-tiebreak final 10-6 7-10 10-5. Opelka started well in the first set but lost it, and appeared out of momentum for the third and final set.

Fonseca Tries to Kickstart 2026

Fonseca, still just 19, won his first ATP doubles title at the ATP Rio Open recently. Playing at home with his countryman Marcelo Melo. Fonseca has yet to make the second week in Either Indian Wells and Miami, and he’s just 1-3 to start the season in singles, with fitness perhaps being a concern and it remains to be seen what type of draw he will be given for Indian Wells. Fonseca, a popular sportsman in Brazil, plays a relatively heavy exhibition circuit workload. He needs to kickstart his regular season on tour, as his superior baseline game on the indoor hard court showed in Las Vegas against quality opponents.

Opelka, the other finalist, began his season 3-3 after a 21-23 record in 2025 at the ATP level, he’s aiming for a return to the top 50 eventually.

MGM Slam Shows Popularity of Tennis in Las Vegas

Long a destination for popular international sporting events, Las Vegas would surely be in the mix for a future ATP or WTA Tour event. The entertainment capital of the United States had their exhibition tournament broadcast on CW Sports in the United States. The broadcast showed the event was well attended, the same weekend that Las Vegas played host to Australia’s national rugby league, a competition that has been using Las Vegas to open their season in recent years.

Las Vegas is also home to major fight sport events, a Formula 1 race, the NFL’s Raiders, the NHL’s Golden Knights, and the NBA Cup among others. Fonseca’s championship run earned him a cool million dollars.

This article first appeared on Last Word On Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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