Thread: Jai Opetaia v David Nyika

Jai Opetaia reigns as IBF champion, and he has largely looked untouchable in his 26 professional fights. They have brought 26 wins, 20 knockouts, and they might just bring him to Usyk.

First, the Australian must navigate a title defence against David Nyika on Wednesday. Then there is the prospect of unifying two or more of the cruiserweight belts. But Opetaia, 29, has hinted at moving up in weight and has even discussed a potential bout with Usyk.

While ringside for Usyk vs Fury 2, Opetaia – a former sparring partner of Fury – told Talksport: “That’s a fight that I would take, 100 per cent, but I’ve got a job to do [against Nyika]. We are chasing unification fights for the cruiserweight division, so that’s on our mind at the moment. [An Usyk fight] is something further down the track, if it happens. Obviously that’s a fight I could only dream of having, so it would be awesome... Man, you can’t say ‘no’ to those things. We’d sit down with the team, we’d make the decision, but right now it’s all just outside noise.”

A statement showing against Nyika would increase the volume of the “outside noise”, regarding Opetaia vs Usyk. Maybe the Australian would still need to dismiss Ramirez for that noise to reach the casual boxing fan, but Opetaia’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, is a specialist in that area.

“The only fight that I see... I love Opetaia against Usyk,” Hearn told iFL TV last week. “I just think it’s such a good style match-up. But Jai’s got to earn his stripes for that fight; he’s got to win next week, then he’s probably got to unify against Ramirez. Then, when he steps up, he’s gonna be able to compete weight-wise. It’s a great fight, but he’s got to continue to build his profile. But I don’t see a lot of fights that genuinely excite me for Usyk. Who else is there for him to beat?”

Maybe Opetaia, but perhaps “beat” is the wrong word. Either way, 2025 may just bring an intriguing heavyweight showdown.

https://uk.yahoo.com/news/anthony-jo...163911548.html

fun fight
https://ok.ru/video/8525796215397

Jai was taking a lot of chances but I guess he could afford to. Excellent finish to the fight. Hope he can become undisputed now.

hopefully zurdo accepts the callout

Absolute sparko job by Opetaia very impressive. Both Jai and Zurdo are on a natural and needed collision course. Great best of match for 2025

jai's seek n destroy recklessness at times is what makes me a fan of his