Stripped Opetaia takes high road after US demolition
Murray Wenzel |
Caught in the crosshairs of an administrative slugfest, Jai Opetaia remains on the high road to a unification dream muddled further despite his dominant US debut.
Australia’s stand-out pound-for-pound boxing No.1 improved to 30-0 with a unanimous points victory against tough Atlanta challenger Brandon Glanton in Las Vegas on Sunday (Monday AEST).
Dominating every round, he added Zuffa Boxing’s inaugural cruiserweight strap to a collection that already included the Ring and IBF world titles.
The 30-year-old is set to be stripped of his IBF belt, though, after the organisation reversed the decision to sanction the bout late on Friday night.
Zuffa Boxing boss and UFC supremo Dana White unloaded on the IBF after the fight, describing their conduct as unprofessional, forecasting legal action and promising to shake up a sport he thinks is broken.
It was Opetaia’s eighth win since he first claimed the Ring and IBF belts in 2022, having his jaw broken in two places but still beating heavy favourite Mairis Briedis in a Gold Coast epic.
But it’s the second time he’s been stripped of the IBF prize, a sad irony considering his unblinking unification attempts have been thwarted by the division’s other champions continuously ducking his advances.
White, who created Zuffa to rattle boxing’s foundations, said he respected and would continue to support Opetaia’s desire to unify.
The boxer, a proud Samoan-Australian, was overcome by emotion when his contingent in the crowd broke into song after the fight.
He outlined his “perfect picture” of taking on WBC champion Noel Mikaelian later this year, before a clash with the winner of May’s WBO-WBA tussle between David Benavidez and Gilberto Ramirez at year’s end for all the belts.
“But there’s a lot of moving parts,” Opetaia admitted of the scenario.
“It’s frustrating, but I’m not sitting here and badmouthing the IBF, it’s not my style.
“I broke my jaw for that belt, couldn’t eat for four months.
“I’m hoping they can put the nonsense aside because the beef isn’t with me.
“It’s the outside causing conflict and I’m the only one suffering.”
Opetaia had already surrendered the IBF title once, for taking an unsanctioned fight with Ellis Zorro in 2023 as part of a deal with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom.
He stopped Zorro and then immediately won it back in a May 2024 rematch with Briedis.
But again the opportunities to unify never materialised and Opetaia’s camp last year severed ties with Hearn.
Opetaia is confident the bullish White, who is backed at Zuffa by co-founder and Saudi adviser Turki Alalshikh, will have more success.
“The profile’s building, the momentum,” Opetaia told reporters at the UFC’s Meta Apex on Sunday night.
“These are the things that can get them over the line and … part of the reason I signed.”
AAP