Jai Opetaia gives the edge to WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol in his fight against undefeated knockout machine Artur Beterbiev eight days from now on October 12. IBF cruiserweight champion Opetaia admits he’s a fan of Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs), and would like to fight him or Beterbiev in the future.
Opetaia (25-0, 19 KOs) defends his IBF title against Jack Massey on the undercard of Beterbiev-Bivol in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. His immediate goal is to collect all the cruiserweight titles against the other champions, but if the Beterbiev vs. Bivol winner move up, he would like to fight them.
“It’s boxing. I have been around this sport my whole life. I believe anyone in that ring, I have the ability to beat,” said Jai Opetaia Queensberry about him the size of Artur Beterbiev. “You just have to fight smart and do the right things. I believe with my ability I can do it against any fighter.”
Opetaia would stand a better chance of defeating Bivol due to his strength and size advantage. Bivol is a boxer who would force Opetaia into a boxing match. He would have a good chance of winning that kind of fight. Beterbiev will be more difficult for Opetaia because he fights on the inside, and this is an area where he is weak.
Opetaia is type of fighter who throws pot shots from the outside, and dives in to throw singles. That style won’t work against Beterbiev, who would force an infighting and cut down Opetaia.
“It’s the perfect step-forward fighter against the corner-cutting boxer,” Opetaia said of the Beterbiev vs. Bivol fight. “I lean more towards Bivol because I’m more of a Bivol fan. I love his style. It’s going to be a good fight. I’m really interested in that.”
Of the two 175-pound champions, Beterbiev is the most likely to move up to cruiserweight to challenge Opetaia, but only if he prevails against Bivol. If he loses, Beterbiev will want a rematch, and he will get one if His Excellency Turki Alalshikh is interested in seeing them fight again.
“Yes, of course. I’m always going to fight nights and adjust everyone since my amateur days shooting up the tournaments,” Opetaia said when asked about his thoughts on the possibility of fighting Beterbiev or Bivol. “It’s something in the future that can easily happen.
“It’s one of those mega-fights that builds the profile. I have to do my job and handle my business. The winner of this fight is going to be huge. It’s definitely a possibility, but my full focus right now is just collecting the cruiserweight belts. But if those opportunities come up, I’ll take them for sure,” Opetaia said of his interest in playing the winner of the Beterbiev vs. To fight bivol battle.
It’s understandable why Opetaia would size up Beterbiev after hearing of his interest in fighting him. It would be foolish for Opetaia to assume that because he is bigger than him, he would win because he is not as skilled as he is nor is he equipped to fight from within. Again, Opetaia is just a potshot fighter, and he doesn’t know how to fight up close.
