BoxRec

Delta Jay wrote: ↑18 Dec 2023, 09:42 Normally when the IBF enforce a daft mando and force the stripping of a champ it’s because they have another guy lined up to fight for the vacant who will pay a higher sanctioning fee or generate a bit more cash somehow. Happens often enough. I just don’t see which cruisers they could possibly be wanting to do it with?

Just realised it might even be Canelo

So they stripped Fury so Glazkov could fight Martin for a higher sanction fee?

Instead of the Fury-Wlad rematch which would have generated millions.

I know it didn't happen, but they didn't know that at the time.

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑18 Dec 2023, 10:02

Delta Jay wrote: ↑18 Dec 2023, 09:42 Normally when the IBF enforce a daft mando and force the stripping of a champ it’s because they have another guy lined up to fight for the vacant who will pay a higher sanctioning fee or generate a bit more cash somehow. Happens often enough. I just don’t see which cruisers they could possibly be wanting to do it with?

Just realised it might even be Canelo

So they stripped Fury so Glazkov could fight Martin for a higher sanction fee?

Instead of the Fury-Wlad rematch which would have generated millions.

I know it didn't happen, but they didn't know that at the time.

Part of me hopes that one of these cherry picks go badly wrong for Canelo

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑18 Dec 2023, 10:02

Delta Jay wrote: ↑18 Dec 2023, 09:42 Normally when the IBF enforce a daft mando and force the stripping of a champ it’s because they have another guy lined up to fight for the vacant who will pay a higher sanctioning fee or generate a bit more cash somehow. Happens often enough. I just don’t see which cruisers they could possibly be wanting to do it with?

Just realised it might even be Canelo

So they stripped Fury so Glazkov could fight Martin for a higher sanction fee?

Instead of the Fury-Wlad rematch which would have generated millions.

I know it didn't happen, but they didn't know that at the time.

No, that was a two step ploy to get Joshua his first belt in a winnable scrap against Glazkov! Martin just got lucky his opponent’s knee turned into Wotsits dust.

Gilberto Ramirez is ranked high by IBF. I’ll take my tinfoil hat off now sorry

Jai Opetaia To Land on Feb. 17 Fury-Usyk Undercard; Will Train With Fury Ahead Of Championship Defense

The sport’s reigning lineal heavyweight and cruiserweight champions will not only share a card but a training camp as well.

BS.com has confirmed that Jai Opetaia will next appear on the undercard of the February 17 Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk heavyweight championship in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

A challenger was not immediately identified as this goes to publication. Boxing Scene has learned, however, that Opetaia will head to Fury’s training camp this weekend to spar with the sport’s reigning heavyweight king leading up to their separate championship title defenses.

The placement marks a quick turnaround for Sydney’s Opetaia (24-0, 19KOs), who will attempt the third defense of the true cruiserweight championship.

This bout comes less than two months after his December 23 first-round knockout of England’s Ellis Zorro (17-1, 7KOs) on the ‘Day Of Reckoning’ undercard also in Riyadh. All three title defenses will now come within a span of less than five months after having sat out much of 2023 while recovering from shoulder surgery.

Opetaia made headlines leading up to the Zorro fight, mainly surrounding the circumstances which forced him to relinquish the IBF cruiserweight title.

He was previously ordered to face Latvia’s Mairis Briedis, whom he outpointed over twelve furious rounds in July 2022 to dethrone the three-time cruiserweight champ. The two sides could not reach a deal for what would have been a rematch, which prompted the IBF to order a purse bid.

However, Opetaia already committed to fighting on the Day of Reckoning show, to which Briedis did not object on the condition he still get his mandatory title shot within the deadline period. The IBF nixed the idea, given that Opetaia already used up a voluntary exception when he faced and defeated England’s Jordan Thompson last September.

Ironically, the February 17 date will mark Opetaia’s third fight since Briedis last appeared in the ring in their July 2022 thriller. Briedis is next due to face Mexico’s Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez for the vacant title. The date is pending the outcome of a scheduled January 16 purse bid hearing.

A favorable amount of sympathy was granted to the unbeaten 28-year-old—who represented Australia as a teenager in the 2012 London Olympics—who retained his standing as the recognized cruiserweight champion.

An added layer should come from his time that will be spent in the presence of England’s Fury (34-0-1, 24KOs), who faces Ukraine’s Usyk (21-0, 14KOs) in a bid to crown the sport’s first undisputed heavyweight champion in 25 years. Fury gets something out of it as well in a 6'2" southpaw sparring partner who roughly matches Usyk's physical dimensions.

Fury survived a major scare but couldn’t avoid negative press as his far too competitive and razor-thin victory over Francis Ngannou, a former UFC heavyweight champion who made his pro boxing debut. Their October 28 bout did not come with Fury’s WBC title on the line, but he nearly suffered his first defeat as he was dropped in the third round. Fury rallied to escape with a ten-round, split decision victory.

It was theorized that his preparation for that bout miserably paled in comparison to the work put in for past camps. Fury regained his place atop the heavyweight division with a February 2020 lineal/WBC championship-winning stoppage over Deontay Wilder. Three title defenses have followed, all inside the distance.

good old pretend lineal championship.

Jai is a helluva fighter though.

Great fighter, hard as nails.

I don't get the talk of him maybe going to heavyweight though. He's tiny compared to the giants around these days

forcefraser wrote: ↑12 Jan 2024, 17:37 Great fighter, hard as nails.

I don't get the talk of him maybe going to heavyweight though. He's tiny compared to the giants around these days

he's as big as Usyk....

He may be fighting Briedis in a rematch in Saudi

Opetaia briedis will likely make an unreal scrap again

Oiky wrote: ↑15 Jan 2024, 14:03 Opetaia briedis will likely make an unreal scrap again

Jai deserves credit for taking that, he took so much punishment in that fight, was drinking through a straw for months. Jai is clearly a fighter without fear.

It is going to be an epic card. I'm not arsed what it costs I'll pay £30 or whatever it is

I know a lot of people are unhappy with these fights being held in Saudi ,, myself i'm happy has Larry , because they are giving us the fights , Money talks , too late just set the alarm and get up early , or go hit a nightclub , get home in time watch a good fight , then go sleep ,

SeanBrennan wrote: ↑15 Jan 2024, 16:40

Oiky wrote: ↑15 Jan 2024, 14:03 Opetaia briedis will likely make an unreal scrap again

Jai deserves credit for taking that, he took so much punishment in that fight, was drinking through a straw for months. Jai is clearly a fighter without fear.

It is going to be an epic card. I'm not arsed what it costs I'll pay £30 or whatever it is

Jai is just one of those who would relish fighting in any environment, you can just see it in him.

Yeah I agree, the years off to a strong start here.

SeanBrennan wrote: ↑13 Jan 2024, 16:41

forcefraser wrote: ↑12 Jan 2024, 17:37 Great fighter, hard as nails.

I don't get the talk of him maybe going to heavyweight though. He's tiny compared to the giants around these days

he's as big as Usyk....

(He isn’t, he’s smaller. Lower height, shorter reach and smaller frame)

Purse bids cancelled. They will be in seperate bouts..

leejonesjnr wrote: ↑16 Jan 2024, 14:59

SeanBrennan wrote: ↑13 Jan 2024, 16:41

forcefraser wrote: ↑12 Jan 2024, 17:37 Great fighter, hard as nails.

I don't get the talk of him maybe going to heavyweight though. He's tiny compared to the giants around these days

he's as big as Usyk....

(He isn’t, he’s smaller. Lower height, shorter reach and smaller frame)

you're right - that got me told (I checked!) sorry Lee

ZUFFA BOXING SCORES MAJOR SIGNING WITH JAI OPETAIA

Zuffa Boxing has announced it's biggest signing to date, Ring and IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia, a rising star in the sport. The announcement was made Friday.

“Pumped for the future,” Opetaia said in a Zuffa Boxing video that was posted on X. “Exciting times. Let’s get these big fights over the line. Unification [and] undisputed soon. Let’s go.”



Opetaia (29-0, 23 KOs) established himself as one of the top cruiserweights when he won the then-vacant IBF title in a unanimous decision victory over multiple-time world champion Mairis Briedis in May 2024.

The dynamic southpaw from Sydney, Australia, has successfully defended his belt five times over two reigns, including a rematch with Briedis.

Opetaia, 30, last fought on Dec. 6, taking down previously unbeaten Huseyin Cinkara by an eighth-round knockout.

Zuffa Boxing’s first show will take place January 23. The main event pits 154-pound contender Callum Walsh (15-0, 11 KOs) against Carlos Ocampo (38-3, 26 KOs) in a 10-round middleweight bout at Meta Apex in Las Vegas.

Also on the card, Misael Rodriguez (15-0, 7 KOs) will face Austin Deanda (17-0, 11 KOs) in a 10-round middleweight matchup. And Julian Rodriguez (24-1, 15 KOs) will fight Cain Sandoval (17-0, 15 KOs) in a 10-round welterweight bout.

The show begins at 9 p.m. ET and will be streamed on Paramount Plus.

Zuffa Boxing was formed by TKO and Sela, an entertainment conglomerate. The company’s leadership includes Dana White, president and CEO of UFC; Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority and owner of The Ring; Sela managing director and CEO Dr. Rakan AlHarthy, and WWE president Nick Khan, who is a TKO board member as well.

Will they be paying UFC money?

Opetaia with Zuffa will give us a good measuring stick of how much they are going to be spending. Obviously he's a beast and I've enjoyed watching him live at reasonable times. Over the last few years, the big fights have been getting made, we know why, but maybe now we are heading to a new cold war, where fighters on different platforms once again, won't face each other.

It’s a strange one.

Dana has talked about not working with other promoters, working without sanctioning bodies and going back to the old weight divisions.

Yet he’s signed a co-promotional deal with Jai who is IBF champ and said he wants unification fights and who fights at cruiserweight which is one of the newer weights in boxing.

maverick23 wrote: ↑17 Jan 2026, 08:44 It’s a strange one.

Dana has talked about not working with other promoters, working without sanctioning bodies and going back to the old weight divisions.

Yet he’s signed a co-promotional deal with Jai who is IBF champ and said he wants unification fights and who fights at cruiserweight which is one of the newer weights in boxing.

A vintage MMA meme that I think boxing fans should be aware of:

Mick Francis insists "Zuffa will allow Jai Opetaia to unify"

With the announcement that cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia has signed with Zuffa Boxing, opinion was split about the hard-hitting Aussie’s ambitions.

But Opetaia’s manager Mick Francis has confirmed that unifications remain a priority for the lineal and IBF champion, even though Zuffa Boxing boss Dana White said he had no intention of entertaining the sanctioning bodies.

“One of the concerns was they didn’t recognize the sanctioning bodies,” Francis told Boxing King Media. “However, probably to sweeten the deal and get Jai across the line is that they will late Jai fight for the titles and unify the division, which is exactly what he wants to do.”

Francis said Opetaia did not have any other promotional offers and that he had signed to be the face of the upstart company.

“His personal brand will blow up and go through the roof and that’s something we’ve always wanted to do and he’ll get the opportunity to unify,” Francis added. “Jai wants to unify the titles. He wants someone to believe in him and to support him and someone behind him.

“Yeah, Jai has fought on Riyadh Season and that’s been a massive shot in the arm to a lot of fighters and promoters globally and it’s been a really good thing. I feel Riyadh Season is slowing down a little bit. Last year, Jai fought three times in Australia. Putting on major title fights in Australia is hard because we just don’t have that population and it’s hard financially.”

Opetaia’s last appearance on a Riyadh Season bill was against Jack Massey in late 2024. Francis said they had two fights bookmarked this year, one that would be announced soon and a big fight later in the year “against a light heavyweight who wants to come up. He just wants to fight the best, he wants to go up against whoever’s got the belts.”

However, over at Boxing Social, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman was not so positive about Zuffa’s entry into the marketplace.

“Well, it’s very unfortunate that Dana White and all his team have taken this route, to try to come in and try to bully and be so aggressive,” said Sulaiman. “There’s no need for aggressiveness. They can do their boxing league and they can do whatever they do. I wish them success. They can do good for boxers. But the way they are presenting it is absolutely to the contrary of the benefit of the boxing general state.

“As an example, you see for the first event Callum Walsh, Callum has been the WBC Continental Americas for a couple of years. “Ever since he conquered that title, that championship, he has been so proud displaying his belt on his social media with his friends. I have met with him many times and his dream is to be the WBC world champion, just as Dalton Smith did so incredibly, just as Conor Benn said he only wants the WBC… it is very unfortunate. As I say, there is no need for such negativity in our sport, but that’s their decision.

“That’s the path they want to take and the history behind the WBC, the WBO, the IBF, the WBA, is so rich. This is the way boxing is all about. It’s like American football and the NFL is the major league. There have been so many attempts of minor leagues coming in and they say they’re going to take over, the XFL and I don’t know how many others. Those are minor, secondary leagues as they are going to be, TKO and Zuffa. They’re minor league. I wish them well. I hope they give work to boxers. But the way they have presented it, it’s completely against the benefit of the boxer.”

Good luck getting the other guys to sign up to fight him. He's WANTED to unify this whole time. The other "Champions" in the division won't fight him.

How about he quits wasting all of our collective f*cking times, and makes a meaningful career move by going up to Heavyweight.

Jai Opetaia will headline a Zuffa Boxing show on March 8 at Meta APEX in Las Vegas. He’ll defend his lineal, RING and IBF cruiserweight titles against an opponent to be determined.

This will be Opetaia’s U.S. debut and his first fight on a Zuffa card after signing with the company.

His Zuffa deal reportedly lets him fight both on Zuffa shows and for Riyadh Season cards, which he says helps his goal of becoming the undisputed cruiserweight champion.

So it's a unification fight against Mikaelean at the UFC venue that only holds a thousand people. Boxing has got pretty weird. Looking forward to the fight though.