After stopping Ellis Zorro inside one round at ‘Day Of Reckoning’ in Saudi Arabia, boxing fans want to know who Jai Opetaia’s next fight will be against. Read on to find out who Opetaia’s next fight is against, and what his options are moving forward in the cruiserweight division.
What Next For Jai Opetaia?
After emphatically stopping Ellis Zorro inside one round on the undercard of ‘Day Of Reckoning’ in Saudi Arabia, here at SportsLens we are on hand to assess what could be next for Jai Opetaia.
Jai Opetaia’s next fight has been officially confirmed. The unbeaten Australian will take on Mairis Briedis in a rematch on the Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk undercard in Saudi Arabia. The fight is set to go down in Riyadh on May 18th, as the chief support to the Fury vs Usyk undisputed world heavyweight title clash.
As one of the biggest stars in world boxing right now and the single best cruiserweight on the planet, it comes as no surprise that fighters are queuing up to face the Ring Magazine champion.
Jai Opetaia became world champion back in July 2022, comprehensively outpointing Mairis Briedis to become the IBF World Cruiserweight Champion. Following his success over Briedis, Opetaia was forced to have 14 months out of the ring due to injury.
However, he came back with a bang in September 2023, knocking out Jordan Thompson in four round to retain his IBF World Cruiserweight & Ring Magazine Titles in the process. Opetaia then announced he would feature on the Anthony Joshua undercard in Saudi Arabia, where he faced Britain’s unbeaten prospect Ellis Zorro.
The IBF sanctioning body weren’t happy with this as a title defence, so the Australian boxing juggernaut vacated his title and just defended his Ring Magazine belt instead. Opetaia blew Zorro away inside ethe very first round, knocking the formerly unbeaten Brit out with a backhand left from the southpaw stance.
For Jai Opetaia’s next fight, he will undoubtedly go in as the overriding favourite with cash-out betting sites. Is it any wonder? He is without a doubt the best cruiserweight fighter on the planet, regardless of belts. Nobody can dispute that Jai Opetaia is the #1 cruiserweight in the world.
RELATED: Jai Opetaia Net Worth, Career Earnings & Sponsorship Deals
Jai Opetaia Next Fight
Jai Opetaia is set for his first fight of 2024, as the best cruiserweight in the world returns to the ring for the third time in five months.
After being stripped his IBF World Cruiserweight Title for facing Ellis Zorro on ‘Day Of Reckoning’ in Saudi Arabia on December 23rd, Opetaia will once again fight for the coveted red and gold belt. But just who is Jai Opetaia’s next fight against?
Jai Opetaia vs Mairis Briedis Rematch Set For May 18th
Jai Opetaia beat Mairis Briedis via unanimous decision back in July 2022, becoming just the second man to defeat the great Latvian besides Oleksandr Usyk. Now, the rematch is on, 22 months after the pair first battled in the ring.
First time around, Briedis was the overriding favourite with boxing betting sites to defeat Jai Opetaia. This came as no surprise to boxing fans, as Opetaia was a totally unknown quantity, whereas Briedis was a proven world class fighter.
As Briedis was the pre-fight favourite with UK bookmakers to defeat the unknown Aussie, there was a rematch clause in the contract. This means that Opetaia, if he won, was obliged to give Briedis a shot at winning his belt back.
That is now the case, although Opetaia is of course no longer the champion having relinquished his belt. That means that Opetaia vs Briedis 2 goes down for the vacant IBF World Cruiserweight Title.
This time around, the bookies have it the other way around. UK sports betting apps have made Opetaia a 1/3 favourite, with Brieidis now the 21/10 underdog to become a three-time world champion.
Be sure to claim the various boxing betting offers and boxing free bets available on the SportsLens site before Jai Opetaia’s next fight. Also check out the boxing live streaming sites that will air the Aussies fights going forward.
Jai Opetaia vs Mairis Briedis 2
- 🥊 Fight: Jai Opetaia vs Mairis Briedis 2
- 📊 Records: Opetaia (24-0, 19 KO’s) | Briedis (28-2, 20 KO’s)
- 📅 Date: May 18th, 2024
- 🕛 Fight Time: Approx. 9:30PM GMT
- 🏆 Title: Ring Magazine & IBF World Cruiserweight Titles
- 📺 TV Channel: UK: TNT Sports Box Office
- 🏟 Venue: Kingdom Arena | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
- 🎲 Fight Odds: Opetaia 1/3 | Briedis 21/10
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