Jai Opetaia moves up to heavyweight to take on Deontay Wilder

Jai Opetaia vs Deontay Wilder

Although heavily rumoured, the news of undefeated former IBF world cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia (31-0, 24 KOs) moving up to heavyweight for the first time to take on Deontay Wilder (45-4-1, 43 KOs) still came as a surprise to many.

The Australian and American will lock horns on the Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua card in Cardiff on Decem,ber 12, live on DAZN PPV.

Once the most feared heavyweight on the planet, 41-year-old Wilder once had boxing’s best knockout record having stopped every man he had faced on his way to becoming WBC heavyweight champion. He held the prestigious green and gold title for four years until he came up against Tyson Fury, drawing their first fight, then sensationally knocked out in the next two.

Since the last of those epic trilogy contests in 2021, he has been rather inactive and fought just five times in five years. He has lost four from his last seven contests, including KO defeats from Zhilei Zhang and a points loss to Joseph Parker.

Last time out in April, he secured a points win over British veteran Derek Chisora, which he hoped would set up a big fight next and his wish has come true for him.

However, they say be careful what you wish for, because he is set to have his hands full with a two-time cruiserweight world champion, who is unbeaten in 31 bouts and a skilful southpaw who has stopped five from his last six foes.

Opetaia was the youngest ever boxer to make the Australian Olympic team and the youngest boxer of the London 2012 Games, where he was controversially outpointed in the first round. That disappointment prompted the 2011 Junior World Champion to turn professional, where he has picked up 14 titles so far, including the IBF, WBA, The Ring cruiserweight straps.

Prediction

Speaking to Pro Boxing Fans, George Groves was asked who he thinks comes out on top.

“I think Opetaia wins. I think he does stop Wilder. I’ve a good relationship with both camps, both guys. I’ve spent some time with Opetaia, and I think he’s a proven talent, a tremendous figure, and maybe the best is still to come.

“With Wilder, you can’t say the same; you don’t think the best is to come with Wilder. It’s a dangerous fight for him. He’s a good lad, I wish him well. Hopefully it’s a good fight.”

Opetaia has won all 31 of his fights so far, with 24 KOs. He is 10 years Wilder's junior at 31 and very much an aggressive, come-forward fighter, with an all-round ability, who is in his prime, so the matchup with Wilder is an intriguing one.

The main event is set to be the biggest fight of the year, but this addition to the undercard is a fitting fight for such an historic event.

Tickets

An estimated 10,700 Fury vs Joshua tickets are now listed on the secondary market, equivalent to around 13.3% of the expected crowd at Principality Stadium.

The analysis looks at how many tickets have been listed for resale since the sell-out. Listings on StubHub peaked at 8,618 on 19 October, ten days after the sale, and stood at 7,613 on 2 November. Including unadvertised tickets, total resale stock is estimated at around 15.7% of capacity.

Resale asking prices have also dipped across the main seating areas. The figures come from Ticket-Compare.com's tracking of resale listings.