Jai Opetaia’s homecoming fight on Australia’s Gold Coast was as brutal as it was memorable. In his first bout Down Under since breaking his jaw to dethrone Mairis Briedis in 2022, the IBF cruiserweight champion overwhelmed David Nyika in four rounds, trading heavy blows before landing a knockout punch that left Nyika momentarily motionless. Opetaia, 29, admits the raucous hometown atmosphere pushed him into a slugfest, saying, "The crowd came here to see a war. It was a dogfight."
Though Opetaia had fought his previous bouts in Saudi Arabia and the UK, promoter Mick Francis succeeded in bringing him back to the Gold Coast Convention Centre. The champion says the brawl with Nyika was just what fans wanted, even if both fighters took more punishment than usual. "I was swinging a bit too much," Opetaia laughed, "but it’s all good. We traded until someone went to sleep - and he didn’t want to go down."
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Next for Opetaia could be a unification bout with WBA and WBO titlist Gilberto Ramirez, potentially staged in Saudi Arabia. The Aussie southpaw insists he’s ready: "We’re chasing that unification fight, for sure. Why not? Let’s go. As soon as possible." And while there’s long been talk of Opetaia testing the heavyweight waters, he says there’s no rush: "We want to unify first. When the move up comes, it comes."
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Image Credit: Matchroom Boxing