David Benavidez and Jai Opetaia have verbally agreed to a cruiserweight clash next year, but Opetaia will first make his heavyweight debut against Deontay Wilder.
Benavidez currently holds both the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles and is challenging WBC champion Michal Cieslak in a three-belt unification showdown next month, where he could move within one victory away from the undisputed title.
Meanwhile, Opetaia has an ongoing lawsuit against the IBF, which he hopes will see him eventually reinstated as their world champion and thus tee up a mammoth match-up with Benavidez for all four belts.
It has now been formally announced that Opetaia will step up to heavyweight for a meeting with former long-reigning WBC champion Wilder, but, speaking with Fight Hub TV, Benavidez remained confident that Opetaia will return to cruiserweight for their planned May bout.
“It’s a good fight, I realise that they want to stay busy because taking a whole year off and waiting until [our fight in] May will be a long time. I already have my obligations over here, they are doing their thing. Both of us have good fights until we have our showdown next May.”
As for the fight itself, ‘The Mexican Monster’ said that his rival should have no issues dealing with ‘The Bronze Bomber’ if he is able to avoid the not-so-secret weapon that has produced 42 heavyweight knockouts.
“I think that it is dangerous because you can see that Jai Opetaia gets hurt a lot and I am not trying to discredit him or nothing. It has been shown that he has been hurt a lot by fighters that are slower.
“Deontay Wilder, say what you want about him, he still has that fast right-hand. So, if Wilder can get that in then Opetaia would have to face some adversity. But, if he neutralises the right-hand, I don’t think that he should have a problem with him at all.”
Wilder-Opetaia takes place on the undercard of the blockbuster Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua bill on Friday, December 11, at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.
