Mick Francis insists "Zuffa will allow Jai Opetaia to unify"

With the announcement that cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia has signed with Zuffa Boxing, opinion was split about the hard-hitting Aussie’s ambitions.

But Opetaia’s manager Mick Francis has confirmed that unifications remain a priority for the lineal and IBF champion, even though Zuffa Boxing boss Dana White said he had no intention of entertaining the sanctioning bodies.

“One of the concerns was they didn’t recognize the sanctioning bodies,” Francis told Boxing King Media. “However, probably to sweeten the deal and get Jai across the line is that they will late Jai fight for the titles and unify the division, which is exactly what he wants to do.” 

Francis said Opetaia did not have any other promotional offers and that he had signed to be the face of the upstart company.

“His personal brand will blow up and go through the roof and that’s something we’ve always wanted to do and he’ll get the opportunity to unify,” Francis added. “Jai wants to unify the titles. He wants someone to believe in him and to support him and someone behind him. 

“Yeah, Jai has fought on Riyadh Season and that’s been a massive shot in the arm to a lot of fighters and promoters globally and it’s been a really good thing. I feel Riyadh Season is slowing down a little bit. Last year, Jai fought three times in Australia. Putting on major title fights in Australia is hard because we just don’t have that population and it’s hard financially.”

Opetaia’s last appearance on a Riyadh Season bill was against Jack Massey in late 2024. Francis said they had two fights bookmarked this year, one that would be announced soon and a big fight later in the year “against a light heavyweight who wants to come up. He just wants to fight the best, he wants to go up against whoever’s got the belts.” 

However, over at Boxing Social, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman was not so positive about Zuffa’s entry into the marketplace.

“Well, it’s very unfortunate that Dana White and all his team have taken this route, to try to come in and try to bully and be so aggressive,” said Sulaiman. “There’s no need for aggressiveness. They can do their boxing league and they can do whatever they do. I wish them success. They can do good for boxers. But the way they are presenting it is absolutely to the contrary of the benefit of the boxing general state. 

“As an example, you see for the first event Callum Walsh, Callum has been the WBC Continental Americas for a couple of years. “Ever since he conquered that title, that championship, he has been so proud displaying his belt on his social media with his friends. I have met with him many times and his dream is to be the WBC world champion, just as Dalton Smith did so incredibly, just as Conor Benn said he only wants the WBC… it is very unfortunate. As I say, there is no need for such negativity in our sport, but that’s their decision. 

“That’s the path they want to take and the history behind the WBC, the WBO, the IBF, the WBA, is so rich. This is the way boxing is all about. It’s like American football and the NFL is the major league. There have been so many attempts of minor leagues coming in and they say they’re going to take over, the XFL and I don’t know how many others. Those are minor, secondary leagues as they are going to be, TKO and Zuffa. They’re minor league. I wish them well. I hope they give work to boxers. But the way they have presented it, it’s completely against the benefit of the boxer.”

Tris Dixon covered his first amateur boxing fight in 1996. The former editor of Boxing News, he has written for a number of international publications and newspapers, including GQ and Men’s Health, and is a board member for the Ringside Charitable Trust and the Ring of Brotherhood. He has been a broadcaster for TNT Sports and hosts the popular “Boxing Life Stories” podcast. Dixon is a British Boxing Hall of Famer, an International Boxing Hall of Fame elector, a BWAA award winner, and is the author of five boxing books, including “Damage: The Untold Story of Brain Trauma in Boxing” (shortlisted for the William Hill Sportsbook of the Year), “Warrior: A Champion’s Search for His Identity” (shortlisted for the Sunday Times International Sportsbook of the Year) and “The Road to Nowhere: A Journey Through Boxing’s Wastelands.” You can reach him @trisdixon on X and Instagram.