“Undisputed. Don’t take your thoughts away uncontested. We’re chasing unification fights. If we don’t get one by the end of the year, I’ll be pretty damn disappointed,” Opetaia told Rg.org.
He signed with Zuffa in January, and within weeks he said what the deal should deliver before December. Most champions spend the early part of a partnership talking about opportunity and faith. Opetaia did something else. He called the result and attached it to a window.
The cruiserweight division isn’t moving slow for anyone. Opetaia is undefeated through 29 fights and has the IBF, Ring and lineal recognition. At 29, he’s in his prime, and the best years don’t wait while new promotional ventures establish their foundations. This is Zuffa’s first real test run in boxing, and Opetaia is his most accomplished title holder. This makes the timeline more than a personal goal. It becomes part of how this project will be judged within the sport.
His upcoming defense against Brandon Glanton under the Zuffa banner is a starting point. A unification fight requires much more coordination, including cooperation across promotional lines and sanctioning bodies. Those talks can move slowly, and sometimes they don’t move at all. Opetaia’s tone suggests that he understands that reality and is unwilling to drift into a holding pattern.
Once a champion puts a date on a goal, it becomes harder to quietly manage expectations. Fans keep track, and the topic comes up again as the months go by. The timeline is no longer private.
Fighters rarely apply that kind of pressure soon after signing. By doing so now, Opetaia made his position clear before the year settled into routine defense. If December arrives without a unification, the measure does not need to be interpreted. It was already stated.
