Tomorrow night should see Jai Opetaia make the third defence of his IBF world cruiserweight title. Instead, it’s for a vacant belt in a rematch against the man who inflicted a double jaw break against him, less than two full years ago. Having made light work of two Brits in-between, the Aussie is on a mission to unify the cruiserweight division – and disrespect has fuelled that intensity.
Opetaia operating at his own pace
Jai Opetaia vs. Mairis Briedis 2 for vacant IBF world cruiserweight title
Ring of Fire co-main from Riyadh’s Kingdom Arena, Saudi Arabia on May 18
Estimated ringwalks anywhere after 10pm BST, midnight Saudi (GMT+3) time
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA — Go back and rewatch the footage, both on fight night as well as several interviews with media prior. Disrespect is a recurring theme.
Defending champion Jai Opetaia certainly felt that and more in the build-up to the Jordan Thompson bout, and produced a spiteful showing at Wembley Arena to defend his IBF and Ring Magazine titles, scoring a R4 TKO last September after a 14-month absence following injury and other contractual negotiations going cold.
He barely celebrated, posing with team members that had made an exhausting 22-hour business trip alongside him for a first world title defence that quickly proved several levels below the plucky Briton’s capabilities standing across him.
This was the best you could bring, or merely a showcase opportunity? How satisfied are you with that performance, the 28-year-old was asked in his post-fight interview.
“I told yas, stare-offs mean nothing, it matters here in the ring and I’m born for this shit, I live for it. I feel like this fight night was his, they made it about him, put me in this small ring. I’ve got good footwork and power, they underestimated me and that’s what happens.
Hurt him early, got a bit excited and started throwing bombs but said to relax when I got back in the corner. Set up those punched and the knockout comes.
Felt good, all the operations are upgrades, I’m looking forward so what’s next? I come here to earn respect, not disrespect, but me and Chris Billam-Smith can go, I want the WBO around my waist.”
His newly-minted promoter Eddie Hearn declared the Australian a monster, one who showed levels and will reign supreme as the cruiserweight king before long.
What did they say?
Post-fight, Steve Bunce said this on BBC Radio 5 Live: “He’s mild-mannered when you talk to him but he’s vicious, got sharp eyes and was relentless when he had Thompson hurt. We could’ve been spared the fourth round. He will be in superfights before long, who knows what might’ve happened had he not broken his jaw in two places?”
He wondered aloud what we – the viewing audience – would be treated to, when Opetaia was again boxing seasoned opponents who could absorb his power and fight back, with Billam-Smith casually alongside him on commentary duty.
“His experience showed, Thompson’s lack of head movement was costly. He landed a right cross flush – best shot he’ll throw – Opetaia walked through it.”
Former EBU European cruiserweight champion Tommy McCarthy sparred with Jai on the Gold Coast for what was originally billed as a first defence against Mateusz Masternak, then the aforementioned Riakporhe (then neither) and his verdict spoke volumes. Mentality rock-solid, an unbelievable fighter. He’s the truth.
Billam-Smith said Briedis “had a few issues” in their first fight and was obviously in London on a scouting mission as he wants to revenge in the rematch. Some claim he’s carrying an unspecified shoulder injury, rumour or fact, we’ll soon find out.
Three-division world champion Badou Jack told me the following month Opetaia, while a credible titleholder, wasn’t yet a big name and it didn’t make sense for the pair to unify. Now 40 and searching for legacy-defining fights, defending gold against a hungry young lion didn’t whet the appetite when weighing the risks involved.
“Anyone with a world title belt, I don’t care who, let’s fight. That star power thing is bullshit, he sounds scared – like he doesn’t want to lose, that’s me being honest.”
- Opetaia’s response to Badou Jack’s comments
Since beating Ilunga Makabu in Feb. 2023 to win the WBC world cruiserweight title, he hasn’t boxed since and is now their champion in recess – the aforementioned Mikaelyan seizing his opportunity for vacant honours last spring to limited fanfare.
Regardless, Jai stayed active and returned in style with a first-round KO of the Year contender to dismiss another Brit in Ellis Zorro back on the Day of Reckoning card, though the IBF rejected the 17-0 contender’s credentials as a voluntary title challenger and controversially stripped their champion during fight week.
A rematch against former titlist Mairis Briedis always felt inevitable, especially after their 12-round war two summers ago, but the Latvian wasn’t ready to return last December so team Opetaia pivoted elsewhere, knowing the exposure and financial incentives tabled to secure his place on that card would be worth another camp.
“We were looking for a fight as soon as I got home, honestly, but we came to London to make a statement and build momentum into the next one, that’s exactly what we did.”
- On when he was ready to return after the Thompson win
Those sacrifices have paid off, Opetaia not just thought of Tyson Fury’s boogeyman sparring partner – irresponsible speculation aside – but a credible world champion in his own right determined to refresh a division without a dominant force since former undisputed king Oleksandr Usyk’s heavyweight move in 2019.
Now though, he faces the wily veteran who forced him to box with a broken jaw and eat through a straw for nearly four months following their competitive first meeting.
Barely touched on his travels against a pair of overmatched Brits, perhaps that and an unexpected three-month delay served as a blessing in disguise. Selfishly though, you can sense he wants this chapter of his career closed and in style too.
Zurdo the newest champion in a division needing clarity
Billam-Smith defends WBO honours in a June 15 rematch against former foe Richard Riakporhe, who was mandated to box the Aussie before BOXXER were in the headlines for causing another stumbling block, pulling him on relatively late-notice.
CBS hasn’t hidden his goal: newly-crowned WBA titlist Zurdo Ramirez and a trip Stateside is the carrot dangling for the Bournemouth man, after the former super-middleweight champion dethroned an inactive Arsen Goulamirian on March 30.
ALSO READ:
March 2023 — Yes, Zurdo Ramirez’s big weight miss was a blessing in disguise
Nov. 2022 — Unpicking Zurdo’s tendencies from recent TKO wins pre-Bivol
Having scored a R3 TKO win over Makabu last November, WBC titlist Norair Mikaelyan makes his first title defence next month vs. Ryan Rozicki and the 200lb division is humming along nicely again without logjam, inactivity now in the rearview mirror.
Provided the aforementioned champions, or their respective challengers, can produce impressive performances that catch the eye, there’s no reason why they can’t be promoting their talents in Saudi Arabia for unified gold before the year’s end.
Heavyweight is rightly deemed the glamour division, it’s no surprise cruiser has lacked spice and needs a jolt in its post-Usyk era. Is Jai the man to provide it?
“I’m very proud to fly the flag for Australia and Samoa, it’s a massive privilege and fuel every day in the gym, I love it.”
- The 28-year-old is proud of his heritage, and they weren’t shy with their support this week as usual
We’ll get closer to a definitive answer this weekend and given what’s at stake after an absorbing first encounter between the pair, we’re in for a treat.
Full card, is as follows
All bouts scheduled for 12×3-minute rounds unless stated
Main event
Oleksandr Usyk (c) vs. Tyson Fury (c) for IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC, WBO world heavyweight titles
Main card
Australia’s Jai Opetaia (24-0, 19 KOs) vs. Latvia’s Mairis Briedis (28-2, 20 KOs) for vacant IBF world cruiserweight championship
Wales’ Joe Cordina (c, 17-0 with 9 KOs) vs. N. Ireland’s Anthony Cacace (c, 21-1, 15 KOs) for IBF, IBO world super-featherweight belts
Heavyweight: Germany’s Agit Kabayel (24-0, 16 KOs) vs. Cuba’s Frank Sanchez (24-0, 17 KOs) in final eliminator for WBC world title
Undercard
Lightweight: Britain’s Mark Chamberlain (15-0, 11 KOs) vs. Nigeria’s Joshua Oluwaseun Wahab (23-1, 16 KOs) for vacant WBC Silver title
Cruiserweight, 10 rounds: Russia’s Sergey Kovalev (35-4-1, 29 KOs) vs. Sweden’s Robin Sirwan Safar (16-0, 12 KOs)
Heavy, 10 rounds: Britain’s Moses Itauma (8-0, 6 KOs) vs. Germany’s Ilja Mezencev (25-3, 21 KOs) for vacant WBO Inter-Continental strap
Cruiserweight, 8 rounds: New Zealand’s David Nyika (8-0, 7 KOs) vs. Germany’s Michael Seitz (12-0, 10 KOs)
Featherweight, 10 rounds: Britain’s Isaac Lowe (24-2-3, 8 KOs) vs. Afghanistan’s Hasibullah Ahmadi (16-1, 5 KOs)
Light-heavy, 10 rounds: Ukraine’s Daniel Lapin (9-0, 3 KOs) vs. Portugal’s Octavio Pudivitr (9-1, 4 KOs) for vacant WBA Inter-Continental title
Picture source: Getty Images, quotes procured by me
Mo and Sports 