Mairis Briedis vs. Jai Opetaia | Wasserman - July 2, 2022

[giacomino]

Back to back defenses against guys who have beaten nobody. I guess Briedis is cashing in. Will be interesting if Jai gives him a go. I guess anything is possible against a relatively inactive, 37-year-old beltholder

[Ruthless-RKO]

Back to back defenses against guys who have beaten nobody. I guess Briedis is cashing in. Will be interesting if Jai gives him a go. I guess anything is possible against a relatively inactive, 37-year-old beltholder

This one’s a Mando.

But many are saying don’t sleep on Jai.

[giacomino]

Back to back defenses against guys who have beaten nobody. I guess Briedis is cashing in. Will be interesting if Jai gives him a go. I guess anything is possible against a relatively inactive, 37-year-old beltholder

This one’s a Mando.

But many are saying don’t sleep on Jai.

Didn't know it was mandatory. Last time I looked Jai was ranked #4. Not sleeping on him. He hasn't fought anyone of note but obviously sometimes such fighters prove themselves on the big stage

[gregregegg]

Justis Huni on the underard in a nice fight (considering he is coming off concussion, broken hands, covid, and inactivity...)

[Ruthless-RKO]

Back to back defenses against guys who have beaten nobody. I guess Briedis is cashing in. Will be interesting if Jai gives him a go. I guess anything is possible against a relatively inactive, 37-year-old beltholder

This one’s a Mando.

But many are saying don’t sleep on Jai.

Didn't know it was mandatory. Last time I looked Jai was ranked #4. Not sleeping on him. He hasn't fought anyone of note but obviously sometimes such fighters prove themselves on the big stage

Yup. That’s the IBF for ya. Unknown boxers.

[H8Usernames]

Can Jai win? Sure this is boxing, things happen.

It's something not feeling like watching a Breidis fight that can go either way. If Jai wins then that's just cause of age or styles or covid or something.

Either way just feels like a formality.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Can Jai win? Sure this is boxing, things happen.

It's something not feeling like watching a Breidis fight that can go either way. If Jai wins then that's just cause of age or styles or covid or something.

Either way just feels like a formality.

The Ring Mag belt is at stake too.

[H8Usernames]

Can Jai win? Sure this is boxing, things happen.

It's something not feeling like watching a Breidis fight that can go either way. If Jai wins then that's just cause of age or styles or covid or something.

Either way just feels like a formality.

The Ring Mag belt is at stake too.

It's cool. As far as I am concerned there is only one cruiserweight champion and that is Mairis Breidis so he could drop all belts and just fight for his lineal championship and that would be more than enough for me.

The problem that I have with this fight is that this won't be a great victory for Mairis Breidis and if he loses then we aren't getting some great new cw champion.

[Ruthless-RKO]

If Jai wins, you can see Hearn quickly offering him a career high purse (still won’t be much) to come to the UK and fight Okolie.

Probably less of a sell than against Briedis of course.

[gregregegg]

If Jai wins, you can see Hearn quickly offering him a career high purse (still won’t be much) to come to the UK and fight Okolie.

Probably less of a sell than against Briedis of course.

If Jai wins, and beats the number 1 cruiserweight in the world and has a world title then he is in one hell of a position to sell Aus PPVs. Im all for taking the biggest fights, but in this case fighting okolie in england would be a maddness unles eddie was willing to lose money on the show paying his purse.

Fighting okolie in england has a couple of problems.
-he is a nightmare to fight and you probably lose
-terrible time zone for aus ppv
-Brittish judging concerns
-he isnt a draw
-you have to fly to england, get use to the time difference find somewhere to train ect....

Compare this to fighting say David light in Aus....
-Aus and NZ PPV
-You probably win so keep your earning potential.
-you sleep in your own bed, train at your own gym.
-You have the judging edge.

[Perseus]

Okolie won't be a cruiserweight for much longer anyway.
Jai has to beat Breidis first.
IF he does there is no reason to think about Okolie.
He will be moving on to the land of bigger men and bigger paychecks.

[Ruthless-RKO]

So will this be on CH5 in the UK?

[Ruthless-RKO]

Press Release | Mairis Briedis faces hostile crowd vs football star Tim Cahill’s cousin

Mairis Briedis (28-1, 20 KOs) will defend his IBF and Ring Magazine World Cruiserweight Titles against undefeated mandatory challenger Jai Opetaia (21-0, 17 KOs) on Wednesday May 11 at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia.

Briedis captured the IBF and Ring Magazine World Titles when defeating Yuniel Dorticos in the final of the World Boxing Super Series in September 2020, becoming a three-time World Champion, and cementing his position as a pound-for-pound star and the number one Cruiserweight on the planet.

Following a successful defence of his belts against German challenger Artur Mann in Riga in October 2021, the 37-year-old will now travel down under to face fast-rising Australian star Opetaia on his home turf. The fight was originally scheduled for April 6 but was pushed back after Briedis contracted Covid.

“I look forward to coming to Australia to defend my World Titles,” said Briedis. “I know my opponent is a good boxer. He is a southpaw who is undefeated and who has had a very decent amateur career. As always, I will give my all in training camp and I will come to Australia to show my best boxing. I hope me and Jai can put on a great boxing spectacle for the fans.”

Sydney-born southpaw Optetai is a decorated amateur, who won a bronze medal at the 2012 Youth World Championships and represented Australia at the 2012 Olympics and 2014 Commonwealth Games. Following his amateur success, the 26-year-old made his professional debut in 2015 and has earned his shot at Briedis’ Cruiserweight crown with an impressive run of 21 victories.

He is the cousin of ex-Premier League footballer Tim Cahill.

“It’s a dream come true to get a shot at the World Title and on top of that it’s happening right here on the Gold Coast which is brilliant,” said Opetaia. “I’m a resident in Surfers Paradise so you can’t get any more Gold Coast than that. This is my chance to announce myself to the world. I want to bring home another World Title to Queensland just like Jeff Horn did.”

The fight, which will be promoted by Dean Lonergan for D and L Events in association with Wasserman Boxing, will be the first World Title bout to be held in Australia since Jeff Horn defended his crown against Gary Corcoran just over five years ago in Brisbane.

“This will be a fantastic occasion and I applaud Tourism Events Queensland, Major Events Gold Coast and Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate for throwing their support behind what will be a very special event,” said Lonergan.

“We remember that fight (Horn-Corcoran) and also that incredible day when ‘The Hornet’ defeated Manny Pacquiao to win the World Title at Suncorp Stadium in 2017.

“Now we are getting right behind Jai to achieve his dream and bring home another World Title to Queensland and on his own turf on the Gold Coast.”

Despite his Australian counterpart’s optimism, Briedis’ promoter Kalle Sauerland is confident the champion will be returning to Latvia with the belts.

“Mairis Briedis is a three-time World Champion who has consistently fought the best boxers out there,” said Sauerland. “He’s coming to Australia as World Champion and will be leaving as World Champion. His knockout power is sensational but also his technique, his prowess and his finishing abilities. It’s time for Mairis to show once again why he is the number one Cruiserweight on the planet.”

[maverick23]

So will this be on CH5 in the UK?

I doubt it. The Aussie fights are mid/late morning U.K. time and in reality no one will care about a Latvian against an Aussie over here. They don’t even care about Neighbours anymore!

[Ruthless-RKO]

So will this be on CH5 in the UK?

I doubt it. The Aussie fights are mid/late morning U.K. time and in reality no one will care about a Latvian against an Aussie over here. They don’t even care about Neighbours anymore!

Oh yeh, crap. I forgot it was Aus..

If it was in Lavia, can see them doing a delayed telecast..

[margaret thatcher]

Press Release | Mairis Briedis faces hostile crowd vs football star Tim Cahill’s cousin

poor jai doesnt even get his name in the headline

[Ruthless-RKO]

Press Release | Mairis Briedis faces hostile crowd vs football star Tim Cahill’s cousin

poor jai doesnt even get his name in the headline

But this headline probably got way more clicks that it would have done had the name been Jai.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Jai Opetaia is injured.

Fight once again postponed.

[Ruthless-RKO]

It’s a rib injury.

[H8Usernames]

F this fight man. Jai had his chance. Now he can fight some else and acctually prove himself worthy of a titleshot.

[Ruthless-RKO]

According to Boxrec schedule, this is now on July 2.

https://boxrec.com/en/event/855164

[Enlightened-One]

Am I being excessively harsh, but the cruiserweight division seems a bit lacklustre as of late?

The top guys are all fairly old, relatively inactive and have recently engaged in uninspiring bouts.

Of course, Lawrence Okolie is a youngster in comparison to his fellow world-rated peers, but his most recent performance against Michal Cieslak was fairly disappointing.

The Brit might be decent, but he is probably nowhere near as good as the Matchroom generated hype.

I don’t know what to think, but I do know that a few years ago I was an avid follower of the cruiserweights. However, I’ve recently lost interest.

Anyway, in terms of the Mairis-Opetaia bout, I’ll probably end up watching the highlights (if people claim the fight is really exciting).

[cpx2]

Am I being excessively harsh, but the cruiserweight division seems a bit lacklustre as of late?

The top guys are all fairly old, relatively inactive and have recently engaged in uninspiring bouts.

Of course, Lawrence Okolie is a youngster in comparison to his fellow world-rated peers, but his most recent performance against Michal Cieslak was fairly disappointing.

The Brit might be decent, but he is probably nowhere near as good as the Matchroom generated hype.

I don’t know what to think, but I do know that a few years ago I was an avid follower of the cruiserweights. However, I’ve recently lost interest.

Anyway, in terms of the Mairis-Opetaia bout, I’ll probably end up watching the highlights (if people claim the fight is really exciting).

I remember discussing this when Riakporhe-Turchi was announced. The cruiserweight division is so desolate that it's not actually a particularly bad matchup. I'm a fairly recent follower of boxing and I can't remember a single fight involving guys like Merhy or Goulamirian (not sure what his situation is with Egorov and the WBA) happening. Gassiev is at heavy now (not that he ever fights) and we don't hear much of Dorticos either. The fact that someone like Okolie is a top two fighter in the division is pretty astounding. Decent not fantastic, as you say.

As a UK fan, the British scene at cruiser is reasonable (below world title level we have Billam-Smith, Riakporhe, Chamberlain, Massey, McCarthy, Jumah who are all top-30/40), and they all seem to fight each other, but they're all much of a muchness. Not very inspiring. A bit like an Okolie fight.

[gregregegg]

Am I being excessively harsh, but the cruiserweight division seems a bit lacklustre as of late?

The top guys are all fairly old, relatively inactive and have recently engaged in uninspiring bouts.

Of course, Lawrence Okolie is a youngster in comparison to his fellow world-rated peers, but his most recent performance against Michal Cieslak was fairly disappointing.

The Brit might be decent, but he is probably nowhere near as good as the Matchroom generated hype.

I don’t know what to think, but I do know that a few years ago I was an avid follower of the cruiserweights. However, I’ve recently lost interest.

Anyway, in terms of the Mairis-Opetaia bout, I’ll probably end up watching the highlights (if people claim the fight is really exciting).

Of coarse cruiser is poor right now. The best cruiser moved up (usyk), The best young cruiser moved up (gassieve), Hunter moved up, now the top dawg is getting old (breidis), Then new semi top dog has a rep for being boring and will move up once he establishes top dog status (okolie).

Its a particularrly grim time, but Cruiser weight has 2 huge longterm problems, ITs too big a leap for 175. This means very few multi weight world champs/p4p list type guys move into cruiserweight. And the bigg Cash division right above it, This means top dogs at cruiser get lured to heavyweight..

[Ruthless-RKO]

Press Release | Mairis Briedis vs Jai Opetaia on July 2, live on FITE TV

Mairis Briedis (28-1, 20 KOs) will defend his IBF and Ring Magazine World Cruiserweight Titles against undefeated mandatory challenger Jai Opetaia (21-0, 17 KOs) on Wednesday July 2 at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia.

Briedis captured the IBF and Ring Magazine World Titles when defeating Yuniel Dorticos in the final of the World Boxing Super Series in September 2020, becoming a three-time World Champion, and cementing his position as a pound-for-pound star and the number one Cruiserweight on the planet.

Following a successful defence of his belts against German challenger Artur Mann in Riga in October 2021, the 37-year-old will now travel down under to face fast-rising Australian star Opetaia on his home turf. The fight was originally scheduled for April 6 but was pushed back after Briedis contracted Covid.

“I look forward to coming to Australia to defend my World Titles,” said Briedis. “I know my opponent is a good boxer. He is a southpaw who is undefeated and who has had a very decent amateur career. As always, I will give my all in training camp and I will come to Australia to show my best boxing. I hope me and Jai can put on a great boxing spectacle for the fans.”

Sydney-born southpaw Optetai is a decorated amateur, who won a bronze medal at the 2012 Youth World Championships and represented Australia at the 2012 Olympics and 2014 Commonwealth Games. Following his amateur success, the 26-year-old made his professional debut in 2015 and has earned his shot at Briedis’ Cruiserweight crown with an impressive run of 21 victories.

“It’s a dream come true to get a shot at the World Title and on top of that it’s happening right here on the Gold Coast which is brilliant,” said Opetaia. “I’m a resident in Surfers Paradise so you can’t get any more Gold Coast than that. This is my chance to announce myself to the world. I want to bring home another World Title to Queensland just like Jeff Horn did.”

The fight, which will be promoted by Dean Lonergan for D and L Events in association with Wasserman Boxing, will be the first World Title bout to be held in Australia since Jeff Horn defended his crown against Gary Corcoran just over five years ago in Brisbane.

“This will be a fantastic occasion and I applaud Tourism Events Queensland, Major Events Gold Coast and Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate for throwing their support behind what will be a very special event,” said Lonergan.

“We remember that fight (Horn-Corcoran) and also that incredible day when ‘The Hornet’ defeated Manny Pacquiao to win the World Title at Suncorp Stadium in 2017.

“Now we are getting right behind Jai to achieve his dream and bring home another World Title to Queensland and on his own turf on the Gold Coast.”

Despite his Australian counterpart’s optimism, Briedis’ promoter Kalle Sauerland is confident the champion will be returning to Latvia with the belts.

“Mairis Briedis is a three-time World Champion who has consistently fought the best boxers out there,” said Sauerland. “He’s coming to Australia as World Champion and will be leaving as World Champion. His knockout power is sensational but also his technique, his prowess and his finishing abilities. It’s time for Mairis to show once again why he is the number one Cruiserweight on the planet.”

This event is supported by the Queensland Government via Tourism and Events Queensland and features on the It’s Live! In Queensland events calendar.


FITE tv link - $12.99