{"id":642338,"date":"2026-05-01T08:31:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T08:31:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/642338\/"},"modified":"2026-05-01T08:31:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T08:31:10","slug":"jai-opetaia-demands-ramirez-vs-benavidez-winner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/642338\/","title":{"rendered":"Jai Opetaia Demands Ramirez Vs Benavidez Winner"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former IBF champion pushes his name into cruiserweight title picture ahead of major clash<\/p>\n

Click Here To Watch Benavidez vs. Zurdo and Inoue vs. Nakatini LIVE!<\/a>
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Jai Opetaia has called for a fight with the winner of Gilberto Ramirez vs David Benavidez, putting himself forward for the next title shot. The former IBF champion is pressing his case despite no belt currently in hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, you talk about fighting the best, this and that. Don\u2019t talk about it. I\u2019m right here. The winner out of Zurdo vs. Benavidez, let\u2019s go,\u201d said Jai Opetaia to The Ring.<\/p>\n

Opetaia\u2019s comments arrive just days before Benavidez challenges Ramirez for the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles on May 2. The fight gives Benavidez a chance to secure his first belts at 200 pounds after moving up from light heavyweight.<\/p>\n

The Australian has been positioning himself for a unification opportunity and used the moment to press his case, calling out both fighters rather than focusing on a single opponent.<\/p>\n

The IBF\u2019s decision to strip Opetaia following his move to Zuffa Boxing<\/a> has already affected how the fight is being viewed. Jose Benavidez Sr. has pointed to the lack of a title and limited profile as reasons the matchup does not currently make sense.<\/p>\n

Opetaia previously held the IBF cruiserweight title and remains one of the division\u2019s most avoided fighters, with several proposed fights failing to materialize over the past year.<\/p>\n

His latest statement adds immediate pressure to the outcome of Saturday\u2019s fight, with a clear next step already being pushed publicly.<\/p>\n

A matchup between Opetaia and the Ramirez-Benavidez winner would move the division closer to a full unification, depending on how the remaining titles are handled.<\/p>\n

For now, the focus remains on Saturday\u2019s fight, but Opetaia has made his position clear \u2014 he expects to be next.<\/p>\n

Dan Ambrose is a boxing journalist at Boxing News 24, recognized for his direct analysis and extensive coverage of the global fight landscape. His reporting focuses on major bouts, divisional developments, and the sport\u2019s most discussed storylines.<\/p>\n

Boxing News 24<\/a> \u00bb David Benavidez<\/a> \u00bb Jai Opetaia Calls for Shot at Ramirez-Benavidez Winner<\/p>\n

Last Updated on 2026\/05\/01 at 2:42 AM \t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former IBF champion pushes his name into cruiserweight title picture ahead of major clash Click Here To Watch…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":533260,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[571],"tags":[64,63,802,85],"class_list":["post-642338","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-boxing","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/642338","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=642338"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/642338\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/533260"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=642338"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=642338"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=642338"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}