Jai Opetaia will meet Tyson Fury and chief support officer Oleksandr Usyk Maires Bu on May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Mairis Briedis is scheduled for a rematch.
The second fight between the two heavyweight champions of the heavyweight division has been postponed since the Fight of the Year clash on Australia’s Gold Coast nearly two years ago.
Opetaia (24-0, 19 KOs) came out of the doldrums to take the IBF title from Latvian Briedis with a unanimous decision win. However, he played on a career injury in his first world title fight – a broken jaw on both sides.
“I felt the punch,” Australia’s Oppetaya told BoxingScene. – The third round I felt my jaw crack. I remember, when he broke the first side, it was the left side. I also know why I did it. I’ve fought some southern pigeons [in the past], and when I fight southern pigeons, I avoid those old ladies. I lean to the left. – Only hard memory. I thought as I struggled to get off. So, when I went to orthodoxy, he clearly went that way. I just beat him. I immediately heard the crack. The pain wasn’t too bad, but I knew it was broken. It doesn’t stick directly to my oral care or anything else. I don’t remember the penalty that intercepted the opponent. The blows got worse and worse, and finally, everything fell apart. This is the thing. We fought hard and won.
When the Australian took on Briedis in one of the most exciting heavyweight fights in history, his jaw changed. What followed was a recovery period as Opetaia tried to come back from an injury that forced many others to retire.
Jai Opetaia, Who Won a Title and Broke His Jaw Against Mairis Briedis, Is Set to Run It Back https://t.co/X9XnDPltZ2
— BoxingScene.com (@boxingscene) April 24, 2024
“No, I’m very happy,” Oppetaya said when asked if the injury will end his career. —But four months after the war, I fell into a deep hole. I tried to come back…but nothing good for our recovery. My throat was swollen and I had to take medicine to recover as I couldn’t even drink a glass of water. Every time I swallow it, it tastes like shavings. I have a severe sore throat. It’s a journey, you know what I mean?
– We waited for it to get better, then I got a vibration in my lower left side – At first I had two [plates] on both sides, but one side was infected. What pain is unbearable. I couldn’t chew anything for four months! I live on soup…literally I eat 200 packets of One Minute Noodles a day! They attack and bite. This is a long journey. It seems like forever.
Opetaia’s attitude changed when he signed a contract with Matchroom. He made his British debut in September when he stunned England’s Jordan Thompson in the fourth round. “When we started to improve, we had a lot of problems and setbacks, and we … fought hard, fought for the belt,” he said. ——But this is just a part of life. It makes me stronger. Many people say they want to be a world champion, but are they willing to do what it takes? There I was, trying to get back on the horse. Injuries will continue, but here we are. We are on the biggest stage in boxing history.
Before backing up his long-awaited heavyweight title shot, Opetaia was stripped of the IBF title after agreeing to fight the unranked Ellis Zorro. But that empty title will be revealed next month.
“To be honest, everything was good for me,” he said. – Because I don’t talk about anyone, I’m just on my way. Me and my team, as long as we practice hard, win the game. We did a good job when we did it, and the rest went according to plan. They took the belt from me in my last fight and I will fight for it in my next fight.
– I will not hate; my belt is in really bad shape. I don’t want to talk bad about IBF. They followed the rules and took it from me, but now I’m fighting for it again. Now, the two-time world champion is coming.
