Promoter Eddie Hearn wants his fighter, IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia, to be the next opponent against unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk to defend his titles.
It would be 100% unfair to the top contenders in the heavyweight division if Opetaia was allowed to fight Usyk for his WBA, WBC and WBO world titles without earning the shot by defeating the contenders. What a stupid joke and so, so wrong for the sport.
From Hearn’s point of view, it’s understandable why he wanted his Opetaia fighter to be given a title shot against Usyk. It’s money. He has no one else in his Matchroom stable to fight Usyk after twice beating his top fighter, Anthony Joshua, which caused him to go into a mental meltdown in the ring after his second defeat.
Hearn would laugh if he made a play to have domestic heavyweight Johnny Fisher challenge Usyk for his three belts after the performance he put on against Dave Allen last week. Other than the opetaia, Fisher is the only one that Hearn has. He won’t let Joshua fight Usyk and it will ruin his plans for the “Battle of Britain” money fight against Tyson Fury.
Is it a self-serving move on the part of Hearn, he wants Opetaia (26-0, 20 KOs) to move and jump the queue in front of the main contenders, Martin Bakole, Agit Kabayel and Joseph Parker, without showing that any of those guys to really earn the title. shot
It’s a circus, and it fits with Francis Ngannou getting a straight shot against Tyson Fury and young Derek Chisora ​​challenging for a world title after losing three of his last four fights. Allowing Opetaia to jump ahead of heavyweight contenders to fight Usyk for his three world titles makes a mockery of the sport, but shows what’s important: money.
Opetaia, 29, looked hellish in his narrow win over Mairis Briedis on May 18, running around the ring looking terrified as the 39-year-old started to put heat on him. You got a glimpse of who Opetaia really was during the last four rounds of the fight. He is someone who is fine when he has a passive fight in front of him, but when he is relentlessly attacked by a hard puncher, he turns into a frightened lamb.
“I think Opetaia’s style and it’s a great fight. The only fight I see, I mean, I like Opetaia against Usyk. I just think it’s a good match-up style. But Jai should also earn his stripes for that fight, he’s going to win next week, and then he’s probably going to unify against (Gilberto) Ramirez,” Eddie Hearn told iFL TV of wanting Oleksandr Usyk to fight his fighter, IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia.
“And then, when he gets close, he can compete at weight. It’s a great fight, but he’s going to continue to build his profile. But I don’t see many fights that really excite me for Usyk. He’s done it all. Who else is there to beat?: said Hearn about Opetaia.
If Hearn wants Opetaia to challenge Usyk for his world titles, he needs to have the Australian fight these four:
- Martin Bakole
- Daniel Dubois
- Bakhodir Jalalov
- Agit Kabaiel
If Opetaia can make it through this victorious mini-gauntlet, then he will have earned his title shot against Usyk. Other than that, he needs to go back to where he came from, back to the oases of the cruiserweight division, lackluster fighting, obscure fighters that casual fans have never heard of and never care about.
Opetaia will defend his IBF title against replacement opponent David Nyika (10-0, 9 KOs) on January 8 at the Gold Coast Convention Centre, Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia. The fight will be shown live on DAZN. Nyika is a substitute for the injured Huseyin Cinkara.
