GOLD COAST, Australia – Chris Billam-Smith believes that if Huseyin Cinkara is to defeat Jai Opetaia on Saturday evening he will have to stop the IBF cruiserweight champion inside the opening four rounds.
The 40-year-old Cinkara challenges Opetaia at the Gold Coast Convention Centre, and while their cruiserweight rival Billam-Smith expects him to fight with ambition, he has predicted that if he doesn’t hurt the champion early he will struggle to survive.
Cinkara had been on course to fight Opetaia in January until injury ruled him out and he was replaced at relatively late notice by David Nyika, whose aggression, incidentally, contributed to him being stopped in the fourth round.
Almost a year on Billam-Smith is hoping to challenge the winner in 2026, and he expects that winner to be Opetaia, 30, on account of the attacking threat the Australian can pose throughout.
“It’s a four-round fight for Cinkara,” the Englishman told BoxingScene. “He’ll go out, be wild, looking for the KO. If he doesn’t find it or something near it inside four rounds, Opetaia will stop him in six to eight.
“Opetaia’s strengths are his footwork, speed and grit. A weakness can be pace, but I don’t think it will affect him in this fight.
“Cinkara has punching power and he’s unpredictable. But he also struggles with pace, and can be a bit wild.”
Opetaia and Mexico’s Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez – who previously defeated Billam-Smith to unify the WBA and WBO titles – are widely considered the world’s leading cruiserweights.
The reality that instead of Opetaia, Ramirez is prioritising a fight with the light heavyweight David Benavidez instead means that Billam-Smith is hoping to capitalise by meeting the winner of Opetaia-Cinkara before a potential undisputed title fight later in 2026, in what would potentially be a rematch with Ramirez.
“The winner is unlikely to fight Ramirez with the Benavidez fight happening in May,” the 35 year old said. “I’m hoping to fight the winner not long after that, so the winner will be losing to me and I’ll be fighting the Zurdo-Benavidez winner.
“Zurdo or Opetaia [is the division’s number one]. Zurdo has great wins against two world champions at cruiserweight. Opetaia has wins against lower level opposition but has done it mostly in emphatic fashion.”
