If recognition as the world’s best cruiserweight demanded boxing with a broken jaw, Jai Opetaia would’ve welcomed a cricket bat to his mandible. Mairis Briedis instead did the honors in the second round of their 12-round fight as Opetaia pried away his IBF title, marking the start of his four-year reign.
“It’s mind-blowing to me. Like, f—-, I can’t believe I’m here,” said Opetaia, scheduled to fight Saturday at T-Mobile Arena by way of the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. “But at the same time … I’ve earned my spot. I’ve done the struggle. I’ve done my apprenticeship. I’ve done my hard work — and I’m still doing it.”
A bouncy southpaw with Samoan roots, a steel chin and a point to prove, Opetaia defends his lineal throne against WBC champion Noel Mikaelian. The matchup serves as the co-feature to Ryan Garcia’s WBC welterweight title defense against British challenger Conor Benn, organized by Zuffa Boxing. Should Opetaia (30-0, 21 knockouts) win as a heavy favorite and claim another piece of the cruiserweight crown — he’s a two-time champion per the IBF and Zuffa’s inaugural in-house titlist — a bout with unfied champion David Benavidez beckons as one of the sport’s most compelling.
At 31, standing 6-foot-2-inches, conditioned and chiseled at 200 pounds, Opetaia could vie for the heavyweight belts, if he wasn’t so focused on the undisputed title.
“This is my journey,” Opetaia said with widening eyes and active hands. “What am I going to do? Go up for a … bit of cash and then what? What’s the cash going to do? It’s not going to change my life. I’ve had heaps of people around me say … ‘But you’ve got an opportunity (at heavyweight).’ F—- off. F—- you. This is my journey.”
Opetaia’s interests, other than fighting and four-letter words, include fishing and family — keeping him grounded, balanced and focused on the only goal he’s ever had. As ruthless as a hitman inside the ring with knockouts in nine of his last 12 fights, he’s an everyman outside the ring, uninspired by superstardom.
Said Opetaia after training Friday to the sounds of traditional Pacific songs inside the Meta Apex with his father turned cornerman, Martin, looking on: “If you catch me in a local pub, I’m going to slap me a beer. I’m not a superstar. I’m a world champ. There’s a difference to me. … I’m not chasing f——-g glamour and f——-g fancy likes and followers on Instagram. I don’t care. I just want to win, I want to get paid and I want to go home and spoil my family.”
A husband to Kanesha and father to Lyla, Opetaia grew up on the Central Coast, the fifth of eight children born to Martin and Tracy. His father is a former pro heavyweight whose father and father’s father boxed and his mother was a chef who logged long hours, passing to her son his steely work ethic.
Opetaia started fighting at his father’s behest at the age of 8 as a kickboxer because amateur boxing was disallowed on the Central Coast for those under 14. He’d study fight footage alongside his dad and rep different punches in the living room, naming them for the fighters who threw them while developing his malleable style.
“He sort of had no choice (but to box),” said the elder Opetaia, a trainer before his son was born. “He was fighting men at 15, 16 years old. Fighting men that are 25, 30 years old and he was like a little kid.”
Having ditched the kicks as soon as he was able, Opetaia tore through the unpaid scene and qualified in 2012 for the Olympics in London at 17 and at heavyweight. He debuted a pro in 2015, worked as a janitor for extra cash and ran up his record in Australia to become the top contender for the IBF title.
Days before he upset Briedis — on July 2, 2022, in Gold Coast — his grandmother, Elizabeth, died of cancer. What’s the pain of broken jaw compared to the pain of a broken heart?
“There was nothing that was going to beat him that day,” his father said. Opetaia added: “Honestly, the (broken jaw) means nothing because honestly the emotional pain you feel in life … Your hand hurts. Training hurts. … There’s four rounds left and your body hurts. It’s f——-g going to be done in half an hour and you’ll be laying back in bed.”
In Opetaia’s instance, the hospital bed amid surgery to repair a double-sided facial fracture. He returned to he ring in 14 months (and partnered with Matchroom Boxing) for the first of eight wins since. But save for his 2024 rematch with Briedis — whose lone other loss is to former undisputed cruiserweight and heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk — he hasn’t landed bouts versus top-class opposition or other world champs.
His co-promotional pact with Matchroom expired, Opetaia signed with Zuffa this year. With a chip and a tribal tattoo on his shoulder, his bout with Mikaelian (28-3, 12 KOs) resumes his quest.
“I’ve been chasing world champions since I was a little kid,” Opetaia said, debuting in Las Vegas in March at the Apex with a 12-round beatdown of Brandon Glanton. “This whole journey, bro, has been the f——-g craziest journey. … I always knew I was going to fight for world titles. I never had a doubt. This was my dream.”
Contact Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on X.
