GOLD COAST, Australia – The super middleweight Max McIntyre is preparing to fight Jed Morris in the knowledge that their all-Australian contest becoming the chief support to Jai Opetaia-Huseyin Cinkara represents a “massive opportunity” for him.
McIntyre-Morris will take place just before the IBF cruiserweight title fight at the Gold Coast Convention Centre on Saturday evening after the heavyweight rematch between Justis Huni and Kiki Toa Leutele was cancelled as a consequence of the death of Huni’s trainer Keri Fui and an injury suffered in training by Leutele.
On a promotion featuring fights involving the higher-profile Jason Moloney, Teremoana Teremoana and Jake Wyllie, the 21-year-old McIntyre instead being prioritised in the position of chief support is a reflection of his promoters Tasman Fighters’ faith in his potential. He learned of the development as recently as Sunday, and is keen to capitalise on it, optimistic, as he is, that the pay-per-view will be watched by a significant audience on the influential Australian broadcaster Stan.
“It’s massive news for me,” he told BoxingScene. “Obviously I’m a bit sad for Justis – Keri was close in his team. I’m sad for him, but I’m gonna take the opportunity with open arms. It’s really, really sad news. It wouldn’t be the same [trying to fight in those circumstances if it were me].
“I heard some speculation that Justis wasn’t fighting, but until I hear about it from someone official I’m not going to believe that. I’m not sure how long they knew about that for.
“It’s national coverage – that’s so, so massive. We’ll definitely get worldwide coverage, because it’s a world-title fight – Jai’s fighting Cinkara from Germany, so I’m sure we’ll get worldwide coverage, but a lot of Australia will be watching this one, compared to DAZN. DAZN’s more spread out.
“It was massive. This is the perfect opponent for me too – in a co-main event, to be able to showcase all my skills in front of the whole of Australia. What more can you ask for as a fighter? This is what you dream of; what you ask for. Everything’s fallen into place for me.
“I’m not saying it’s a good thing that Justis pulled out, but everything’s fallen into place.”
McIntyre has sparred Opetaia, widely recognised as the world’s leading cruiserweight, in preparation for the 26-year-old Morris and Saturday’s eight-round contest. At 6ft 3.5ins he is taller than the IBF champion, who in turn has made little secret of the high hopes he has for his compatriot.
Equally valuable for him is proving the opportunity of fighting on the undercards of Australia’s leading fighter, given the exposure that the platform Opetaia attracts presents him with. Tasman say that Saturday’s 6,000-capacity venue has sold out.
“I’ve definitely hopped on at the perfect time – exactly when Jai’s coming up and I’m on his undercards and he’s fighting for world titles,” McIntyre said. “It’s my third Jai Opetaia undercard in the same year, so it’s just going to keep boosting my profile so much more, compared to just fighting on little, tiny undercards. I love fighting in [Brisbane’s] Fortitude Music Hall and stuff like that, but this shoots you all the way up. It’s a massive step.
“Instead of tiny, little steps – you probably don’t get as many fights a year ‘cause you’re fighting on world-title cards; I’m only fighting as much as Jai is, which is two three times a year – it’s a double-edged sword. You wish you were getting more fights, because I’m still coming up and I’m new to the game. Fighting on smaller cards more occasionally or fighting on big cards less often – it’s a double-edged sword. [But] I think the position I’m in is great.
“It’s great [to spar Opetaia]. It’s more the confidence – if I can go in there and mix it with Jai, I shouldn’t be worried about Jed Morris or anyone on the domestic scene. He’s given me heaps of pointers and a lot of advice. Each time I go there I learn something new; each time I spar him I level up. The guy I’m fighting’s not southpaw; Jai Opetaia is southpaw. I’ve had lots of orthodox work, and I asked my coach ‘Are we able to get some sparring with Jai?’, and we ended up being able to get some sparring ‘cause he was looking for sparring too.
“It’s a little bit of a risk as well, because you’re in there with Jai and he doesn’t hit light, either – he’s a legitimate killer. I just know that if I can do that I’ll come in fight night confident. He’s given me some props, too, saying my mental endurance over rounds is good; my ability to stay on is really good. He’s mostly given me props, but he’s also given me pointers here and there.
“[Morris is] maybe my toughest fight on paper. Eight wins, seven knockouts; the guys he’s fought are nowhere near my calibre though, and the guys I’m sparring recently – Jai Opetaia; some of the biggest names in Australian boxing – we’ve been having good rounds. Maybe my hardest fight so far, but he’s not going to give me any trouble.
“It brings more eyes because it’s an all-Australian fight. He’s able to bring his crowd, so he’s probably got a lot of people there going to support him; a lot of people buying tickets; purchasing tables. It’s a good thing for me that he brings more people, because that’s the people that get to see me put on a great performance.
“My coach knows a lot about that style. He fights with a high-guard; there’s a lot of people in Australia that fight exactly like that, and we’ve had sparring, a lot, like that. We’ve been working on how to shut him down; how to manipulate that guard; know where the punches are coming from. [I’m] not going to be standing right in front of him. He’s not going to be able to box with me; he’s not going to be able to brawl with me.
“I don’t think he’s ever been knocked out before, so he thinks he’ll be able to take a shot, but every guy I’ve been in with hasn’t been knocked out and I’ve been the first guy they’ve been knocked out [by], so I think his chin will be his biggest strength, but I also think that’ll be his biggest downfall. He’ll walk on to shots that he thinks he’ll be able to take; put himself in positions that he’s not supposed to be in. I’ll capitalise on everything he does. One of his biggest strengths – he’d be able to punch. He’s got eight wins; seven knockouts. But it’s hard to say that he’s got much power because it’s against ordinary fighters.
“He’s too straight on. He stands and plants; not much footwork. His punches come from the same position. His defence is the same – he doesn’t move his head after he punches. He stands straight on. We’ve analysed everything.”
