Eddie Hearn predicted Jai Opetaia would follow the same career path as Oleksandr Usyk after he made short work of Ellis Zorro on the Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin undercard in Saudi Arabia.
The Ukrainian, now unified world champion at heavyweight, and poised for an undisputed clash with Tyson Fury next year, first won all the belts at cruiserweight.
Australian fighter Opetaia was, until a few days ago, the IBF cruiserweight champion but lost the belt as a result of choosing to fight Zorro at the ‘Day of Reckoning’, live on DAZN PPV, instead of his mandatory, Mairis Briedis.
“He was very hesitant, he wasn’t engaging much,” Opetaia told DAZN’s Chris Mannix. “He was a bit too hesitant and he got clipped.”
Opetaia dispatched Zorro with a brutal left-hander early in the first round in Riyadh, and speaking after the fight he said he would “knock out” the opponents that his promoter put in front of him.
That man, Matchroom chief Eddie Hearn, was in the ring to suggest what was next for his undisputed fighter.
He said that it was “inevitable” that he would move up the weight classes to compete at heavyweight but thought that, like Usyk, he should become undisputed at his current weight first.
You can watch Day of Reckoning, featuring Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin, Deontay Wilder vs. Joseph Parker and Daniel Dubois vs. Jarrell Miller, on DAZN PPV on Saturday, December 23. Click here for more details.