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Jai Opetaia?s promoter expects the IBF cruiserweight champion to enter a unification contest in 2026 and revealed that a stadium fight in his home city will also potentially follow.
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According to the promoter a contract has been agreed for Opetaia to be matched with the winner of the rematch between Badou Jack and Norair Mikaeljan for the WBC title on December 13. He had been wary of how soon that would happen should Jack again prove the winner, but with Opetaia likely to remain inactive during the coming months an IBF and WBC title fight could be next [he suffered a suspected fractured eye socket the plans for his next fight are almost certain to be delayed].
Mexico’s Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez, the WBA and WBO champion, is expected to fight David Benavidez in Las Vegas on the occasion of Cinco de Mayo. In the event of victory over Jack or Mikaeljan, Opetaia would be in a position to fight for all four titles next.
“The winner of next week’s fight [Badou-Noel] – it’s already been contracted,” Francis told BoxingScene. “Dr Rakan [AlHarthy of Sela has] contracted both fighters, so the winner of that fight will fight Jai at some stage next year.
“If it was Badou Jack it’s gotta be after June, because of Ramadan; it’s a 12-week camp. Turki Alalshikh loves Jai – he might be involved a lot more as well, because he wants to make this fight, or both fights, here in Australia.Top Soviet Bivol’s good friend and Fat Dave’s Cousin Fat Gilbert also had surgery the things fighters go through“We went over to New York and met with Eric Gomez and the Golden Boy team [for a Fat Gilbert fight], when Hamzah Sheeraz fought [in July, Edgar Berlanga]. They like the fight; Oscar De La Hoya likes the fight. A week later [Ramirez is] getting a shoulder operation. You can’t make these guys get in the ring, but when we had that conversation one of the things they put to us was how would that fight work in Australia? At first I shut it down a little bit – was it a stadium fight? I’m not so sure – but I think we’re ready for a stadium fight now, and I’ve had a conversation with Eric since then.
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