- Eddie Hearn wants Opetaia take on heavyweight champion
- Opetaia squares off with David Nyika on Wednesday night
Eddie Hearn believes Jai Opetaia is the only boxer on the planet who can challenge heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk.
But the famed British boxing promoter says the cruiserweight needs four things to happen before he can secure one of the biggest fights in Aussie boxing history.
Defeat plucky challenger David Nyika in his Gold Coast IBF and the Ring world title defence on Wednesday.
Unify the division.
Move up to heavyweight, and then convince the sport’s new billionaire match-maker it’s a match worth making.
‘He’s probably the only guy who I think can truly compete with Usyk,’ Hearn said on the Gold Coast ahead of Opetaia’s (26-0) long-awaited homecoming.
Australian cruiserweight king Jai Opetaia (pictured left fighting Mairis Briedis) takes on David Nyika on the Gold Coast on Wednesday night
Promoter Eddie Hearn believes Opetaia is the only fighter on the planet contend for the world heavyweight crown
‘But he’s got to prove his credentials against the entire division.’
Usyk (23-0) was undisputed cruiserweight king before moving up and repeating the dose at heavyweight, beating Tyson Fury twice last year in Saudi Arabian blockbusters.
Arguably Usky’s toughest test came at cruiserweight against Mairis Briedis, who Opetaia famously beat despite breaking his jaw twice in his last Australian start two years ago, and then again in May last year.
Saudi billionaire Turki Alalshikh, a royal advisor and chairman of the country’s entertainment authority, is the boxing fan that made Fury-Usyk and the countless other big-name Riyadh cards happen.
Both Nyika and Opetaia have fought in the Kingdom, Opetaia’s last three wins leaving a mark on the people who matter.
‘Look at what Usyk did … at this stage he wants the money fights so if we can convince the likes of His Excellency that Opetaia against Usyk is a classic, then maybe it’ll happen,’ Hearn said.
‘He’s got to win (against Nyika), then hopefully he can unify the division.’
New Zealander Nyika (10-0) is a 2021 Olympic bronze medallist and two-time Commonwealth Games champion who has known Opetaia since they were young amateurs.
Oleksandr Usyk defeated long-time rival Tyson Fury in Riyadh last month to stamp himself as the best fighter in the world with many experts
The pair pressed foreheads in a heated face-off on Tuesday that stretched almost a minute, Nyika adamant he can surprise the heavy favourite.
‘You want to see that,’ Hearn said of the theatrics.
‘I love that kind of stuff and he looked real with it.
‘Manifestation is something you can kind of talk yourself into, but when you make that walk to the ring you find out very quickly if it’s real or not.’
Nyika could put a huge dent in Matchroom Boxing boss Hearn’s plans for Opetaia.
But a 27th consecutive win should pave the way for a long overdue unification bout with Mexican Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez, who holds both the WBA and WBO straps.
That fight would only leave the WBC strap, currently held by Swede Badou Jack, and get fresh eyes in the Americas on Opetaia, whose cruiserweight division is dominated by Europeans.
‘Got to, for Jai particularly, fight Zurdo, pick up all the belts then take on Usyk,’ Hearn said of what’s next for the winner.
Hearn said another Australian, new Matchroom Boxing signature George Kambosos Jnr, will fight on home soil in March, the second of at least four Australian bouts this year he’ll promote.
The 10-fight Opetaia-Nyika card will be broadcast on DAZN, the global sports streaming network that will soon own Foxtel after striking a deal worth $3.4 billion.
‘There’s a lot of upside here; the numbers are good and it will be interesting to see what that purchase spits out for boxing,’ Hearn said.
