A fresh twist has been revealed in the saga of Jai Opetaia and the IBF cruiserweight title.
It was reported last week that Opetaia was to be stripped of his IBF belt on the first bell of his planned fight against Brandon Glanton at the Meta Apex in Las Vegas on Sunday, due to the fact the contest was also for the inaugural Zuffa belt.
Nonetheless, Opetaia proceeded with his bout and claimed a unanimous decision victory over Glanton to extend his unbeaten record to 30-0.
Following the fight, Opetaia once again shared his desire to become undisputed at cruiserweight, and it seems he may have been given a lifeline to do just that as the IBF announced in a statement that they are yet to make a final decision on stripping him of their title.
“Jai Opetaia made comments during the post-fight press conference that have led the organization’s leadership to question whether he was made completely and fully aware by his advisors of the decisions he needed to make when committing to the bout against Brandon Glanton. The organization intends to look further into this matter.”
The statement also included a strong response to claims that they chose not to sanction the bout due to feeling ‘disrespected’ in the build-up to the fight.
“The IBF categorically rejects any suggestion or claim that it intentionally withdrew sanction to cause harm. The IBF granted sanction of the Opetaia vs. Glanton bout in good faith expecting that what was assured was what would transpire.
“The press conference held at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, on March 8 made it very clear that the inaugural Zuffa World Cruiserweight championship would be contested on March 8.
“The IBF, as previously stated on March 6, reserves the right to sanction title bouts alongside other sanctioning bodies that comply with the same regulations followed by the IBF, and reserves the right to sanction title bouts alongside other contests that stage the IBF Cruiserweight Title remains in deliberation.”
A definitive outcome on whether or not Opetaia does indeed keep hold of his title will be revealed in due course.
