Don’t count Jai Opetaia among those excited for the announcement of Gilberto Ramirez vs. David Benavidez.
The IBF cruiserweight champion from Australia released a statement Sunday, criticizing the WBO/WBA titleholder Ramirez for choosing to face the WBC light heavyweight beltholder Benavidez instead of himself. The announcement was made last night following Benavidez’s seventh round stoppage of Anthony Yarde in Saudi Arabia. The Ramirez vs. Benavidez fight is being targeted for May 2 - the weekend before Cinco de Mayo - with the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas as a potential venue.
“I’ve been waiting for the unification fights for years,” Opetaia, 28-0 (24 KOs), said in a press release. “I’m sick of the excuses. None of these other champions are in a hurry to face me — and we all know why.”
Mick Francis, whose Tasman Fighters company co-promotes Opetaia with Matchroom Boxing, feels that all roads should go through his fighter at 200lbs. He calls the Ramirez-Benavidez fight the contest to see who’s the second best cruiserweight in the world.
“We’re witnessing a great champion being avoided in broad daylight. These so-called champions won’t even say his name. Jai is the boogeyman of the cruiserweight division,” said Francis.
“[Mateusz] Masternak ducked him. [Richard] Riakporhe ducked him. [Chris] Billam-Smith ducked him. And Zurdo Ramirez has ducked him in the biggest, most embarrassing way of all.”
The 30-year-old Opetaia is coming off a fifth round knockout of Claudio Squeo in June.
