IBF cruiserweight champ and, for many people, the beast of the division, Jai Opetaia, has a new opponent for his January 8th title defense. After Germany’s Huseyin Cinkara, unfortunately, broke his ankle and had to withdraw from the fight set for Broadbeach, Australia, unbeaten New Zealander David Nyika has stepped in at short notice.
This move from the unbeaten 27-year-old saves the show. But is this fight a case of too much too soon for Nyika? A former amateur standout, big things are expected of Nyika, but perhaps not so soon in his career. At just 10-0(9), with “The Nice Guy,” as Nyika is known, having been a pro only since February of 2021, maybe Opetaia will prove to be far too much for him.
But again, credit to Nyika for agreeing to step in with less than a month to go until the fight. Opetaia, 26-0(20) will be making the fifth defence of his title on January 8th, and he will no doubt step into the ring as a prohibitive favourite in this one. The southpaw has shown great power along with skill and toughness (he famously battled through a broken jaw in his first decision win over Mairis Briedis when he first became champion), and plenty of experts do see him as the best cruiserweight in the world right now.
With a big unification fight with Mexican warrior Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez in the offing, Opetaia will, of course, be in no mood to either struggle to win or fail to keep his belt on January 8th. This fight is interesting as we just don’t know how good Nyika is, or how good he can become.
Over the years, fighters with even fewer pro fights than Nyika have successfully challenged a world champion and gone home with the belt or belts. Maybe this can happen here? But again, it’s tough to predict this one. Opetaia has to be seen as the favorite to win, but Nyika clearly believes in himself.
