Jai Opetaia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jai Opetaia
Statistics
Real name	Jai Tapu Opetaia
Rated at	Cruiserweight Heavyweight
Height	6 ft 2 in
Reach	76 in
Born	(1995-06-30) 30 June 1995 (age 29) Wyong, New South Wales, Australia
Stance	Southpaw
Boxing record
Total fights	27
Wins	27
Wins by KO	21
Medal record Men's Amateur boxing Representing  Australia World Junior Championships Gold 2011 Astana Light heavyweight World Youth Championships Bronze 2012 Yerevan Heavyweight

Jai Opetaia (born 30 June 1995) is an Australian professional boxer. He is known for being a world champion in the cruiserweight division. This means he competes in a weight class for boxers who weigh between 175 and 200 pounds.

Jai held the International Boxing Federation (IBF) world title from 2022 to 2023. He later won the vacant title again in 2024. He also holds the Ring magazine and lineal cruiserweight titles. A lineal champion is considered the true champion because they beat the previous champion.

Before becoming a professional, Jai was a successful amateur boxer. He won a bronze medal at the 2012 Youth World Championships. He also represented Australia at the 2012 Olympic Games and the 2014 Commonwealth Games. As of early 2023, many boxing experts rank Jai Opetaia as one of the best cruiserweight boxers in the world.

Early Life and Family Background

Jai Opetaia was born in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. His family has Samoan heritage. Boxing runs deep in his family, with four generations on his father's side and three generations on his mother's side involved in the sport.

He also has famous relatives outside of boxing. These include Tim Cahill, who is one of Australia's best ever football (soccer) goal scorers. Another relative is Ben Roberts, a former international rugby league player for New Zealand.

Jai grew up on the Central Coast of New South Wales. In 2020, he moved his training to the Gold Coast. He did this to help his career and chase his dream of winning a world title. Two years later, he achieved this dream in front of his new hometown fans.

Amateur Boxing Journey

Jai Opetaia started making a name for himself in amateur boxing at a young age. Less than a month after his 16th birthday, he traveled to Kazakhstan. There, he competed in the 2011 Junior World Championships. He won the gold medal in the light heavyweight division. This was a big achievement, as it was the first time an Australian had won a junior boxing world championship.

In February 2012, when he was still 16, Jai competed in the Australian Olympic qualifying tournament in Hobart. He won the gold medal in the heavyweight division. A month later, he won the Oceanic Olympic qualifying tournament in Canberra. By winning these events, Jai became the youngest boxer ever to join an Australian Olympic team.

Before the 2012 Olympics, Jai won a bronze medal at the AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships in Armenia. He lost a very close semifinal fight. At 17, he was the youngest boxer in the heavyweight division at the London Olympics. He was defeated in his first fight. In 2014, at 19, Jai decided to end his amateur career. He wanted to become a professional boxer.

Professional Boxing Career

Starting Out as a Pro

Jai Opetaia began his professional boxing career in 2015. He quickly started winning many fights. In July 2017, he won the vacant WBC-OPBF and Australian cruiserweight titles. He won this fight by a technical knockout (TKO) in the ninth round. A TKO happens when the referee stops the fight because one boxer cannot continue safely.

Later that year, he won the vacant IBF Youth cruiserweight title. He won this fight in the first round by TKO. Jai continued to win more regional titles. He defended his Australian title and won the WBO Asia-Pacific and IBF Pan-Pacific cruiserweight titles. He often won his fights by knockout (KO) or TKO, showing his powerful punches.

By 2019, Jai had won the WBA Oceania interim and WBO Global cruiserweight titles. He also won the first-ever IBF Asia-Oceania cruiserweight title. He kept winning, showing he was a rising star in the cruiserweight division.

Becoming a World Champion

Opetaia vs. Briedis I

In 2022, Jai Opetaia got his chance to fight for the world title. He was scheduled to challenge Mairis Briedis, who was the IBF, The Ring, and lineal cruiserweight champion. The fight was postponed twice due to illness and injury. Finally, on July 2, 2022, the fight happened in Australia.

Jai won the fight by a unanimous decision (UD). This means all three judges scored the fight in his favor. It was a tough fight, and Jai broke his jaw in two places during the match. He went straight to the hospital for surgery after his big win. This victory made him the new IBF and The Ring cruiserweight champion.

Defending the Title

After winning the title, Jai had to recover from his jaw injury and then shoulder surgery. He was supposed to fight other top contenders, but those fights didn't happen for different reasons.

Finally, on September 30, 2023, Jai defended his titles against Jordan Thompson in London, England. Jai won the fight by TKO in the fourth round. This was his first successful defense of his world titles.

Vacating and Winning Back the IBF Title

On December 23, 2023, Jai was set to defend his IBF title against Ellis Zorro. However, the IBF wanted him to fight Mairis Briedis again, who was recovering from an injury. Because of this disagreement, Jai decided to give up his IBF title. He still fought Ellis Zorro and won by knockout in the first round.

Even though he gave up the IBF title, Jai soon got a chance to win it back. He faced Mairis Briedis again for the vacant IBF cruiserweight championship on May 18, 2024. Jai won the rematch by unanimous decision. This made him a two-time world champion and a two-time IBF cruiserweight champion.

Recent Title Defenses

Jai Opetaia has continued to defend his IBF and The Ring cruiserweight titles.

• On October 12, 2024, he fought Jack Massey and won by stoppage in the sixth round.
• On January 8, 2025, he faced David Nyika. Jai won this fight and defended his title by knockout in the fourth round.

Professional Boxing Record

See also

• List of southpaw stance boxers
• List of world cruiserweight boxing champions