Jai Opetaia will make his Zuffa Boxing debut on Sunday at the Meta Apex in Las Vegas (Paramount+, 5:30 p.m. ET), looking to confirm his status as the best cruiserweight in the world and enhance his reputation as one of boxing’s most clinical finishes. Opetaia (29-0, 23 KO), the Australian reigning as the IBF cruiserweight world champion for the second time, is defending for a potential fifth time against Brandon Glanton (21-3, 18 KO), with Zuffa Boxing’s inaugural cruiserweight title also at stake.

That’s because Salvador Rodriguez of “ESPN KnockOut” reported it this week. “The IBF has asked Opetai to make a decision for the title he will fight for next weekend.” According to the report, the IBF stated that Opetaia “can either defend the IBF title or challenge for the promoter’s belt, but not both.”

Dana White, who runs Zuffa Boxing, has said he wants to “get rid of the sanctioning bodies,” but Opetaia wants to unify the titles in their division, so it will be intriguing to see which belt will be at stake on Sunday.

Here are the most crucial things you need to know about Opetai and his matchup with Glanton, as well as insights from fellow cruiserweight contender Chris Billiam-Smith.

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Opetaia has destructive power

Former WBO cruiserweight champion Chris Billam-Smith, who defeated Glanton by unanimous decision last April, says Opetaia’s left-hand punching power is crucial to his success.

“He has tremendous power in his left hand,” Billam-Smith told ESPN this week. “He puts all his strength into it, releases it with the power he generates, and the whip that hits it. He sets it up beautifully with the movement of his feet and head, and he’s had a lot of success with it.”

Opetai’s punching power is proof of that X-ray of Claudio Squeo’s jawwhich was broken in two places by a right hook in the fifth round last June. Squeo reportedly needed three metal plates to strengthen his jaw during post-fight surgery.

In January 2025, Opetaia defeated David Nyika in the 4th round with a left hand, just as he did to seal KO victories over Ellis Zorro and Jordan Thompson (both in 2023).

In his last fight in December, Opetaia delivered a devastating 8th round KO to Huseyin Cinkar, after which he claimed he fought “like hell.” Opetaia was caught early and cut, and left Cinkara lying on the canvas with a left hand. Cinkara was taken to hospital with a slight neck fracture and bleeding in the brain – another proof of the damage Opetai’s left hand can do.

Opetaia is on a four-fight knockout streak (three of those opponents were previously undefeated), and since July 2019, only Mairis Briedis has kept him within striking distance.

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Glanton’s strategy should be…

Avoiding Opetaia’s left hand is certainly a good idea considering the injuries it caused last year alone. Trying to catch the southpaw with a counter as he charges with his left hand can pay off, but it’s risky.

Opetaia (6-foot-2), who will be making his U.S. debut, was pushed closest by Briedis, who hurt him and won the final few rounds of their rematch in May 2024. Both suffered broken noses in that fight, and Briedis broke Opetaia’s jaw in their first fight of 2022.

If Glanton can disrupt Opetaia’s rhythm like Briedis did slow in the match, and keep the fight close, throw punches inside and keep the pressure up, he could have some success. If Glanton manages to survive in the later rounds, will Opetaia pay for being overloaded with high-power shots to allow Glanton back into the fight? Or maybe he could stun Opetaia right from the start like Cinkara did?

“I think Opetaia can stop him slow in the game or secure a points win,” Billam-Smith said. “I expect Opetaia to wear him down and the body shots will hurt him. That was the way I fought Glanton and he could have forced a stoppage.”

Billiam-Smith believes Galnton is better than most of Opetaa’s opponents and is one of the most experienced, but he can’t imagine him beating Opetaia unless the champion makes a mistake.

“I don’t think Glanton will have the best chance in the later rounds. I think he needs to catch up before the halfway point,” said Billam Smith. “Glanton has powerful hands, but I’m not sure he has enough speed and feel to cause trouble for Opetaia. I think Glanton is quite one-dimensional, a bit methodical. But if Opetaia makes a mistake, he can make him pay.”

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Opetaia is number 1 in the league, the man to beat

After six title defenses over two reigns in four years and two wins over Breidis, the division’s previous boss, Opetaia is widely considered the best cruiserweight, ahead of Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez.

“We want unification fights, we want Ramirez, I have been asking for them for a long time,” Opetaia said after his last fight. But Ramirez won’t be next, as he is scheduled to face David Benavidez on May 2 to defend his WBA and WBO titles. Noel Mikaelian, the WBC champion, has no fight booked.

There is talk that Opetaia will one day move up to heavyweight, but Billam-Smith warns that those plans should wait.

“I think he should stay at cruiserweight because I want him to fight me!” Billam-Smith, who is a promotional free agent, told ESPN. “But he’s not a large cruiser either and would benefit a lot by moving up [in weight]. I don’t think he’s done at cruiserweight yet either; he didn’t fight well. He could step up and fight someone like Deontay Wilder who has slowed down, but if I were him I would stay at cruiserweight.”

Opetaia has dominated the division since his first win over Briedis in July 2022. He vacated the IBF belt in 2023 to knock out Ellis Zorro in a round, then regained the belt in a match against Briedis in May 2024.

Billam-Smith, who lost the WBO title to Ramirez last year, told ESPN that Opetaia did what champions do.

“He got hurt a few times, but he dealt with it,” Billam Smith said. “He knows what to do when he gets hurt and not start throwing punches while crying.

“Cinkara gave him a few problems, but then everything went as expected. Briedis also hurt him. However, he has not yet won at a higher level because his opponents did not ask him questions.”

Glanton, who bounced back from a loss to Billam-Smith in October to earn a sixth-round TKO victory over former lightweight heavyweight title challenger Marcus Brown, will be competing in his first world title fight and is starting as an underdog. As of Thursday, Glanton is +800 to win according to sportsbook DraftKings.

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Opetaia has a lot of potential

If Opetaia one day moves up to heavyweight, he will become just the latest in a long line of cruiserweight champions to do so – and do so successfully. Former cruiserweight champions Lawrence Okolie and Murat Gassiev are currently among the top contenders in the heavyweight division, a division ruled by former undisputed cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian, who is an inch taller than Opetai, defeated Anthony Joshua in his third heavyweight fight in 2021 and became the undisputed champion of the second weight class. Usyk, who was the cruiserweight king from 2016 to 2018, has defended his heavyweight title five times.

Others like David Haye and Evander Holyfield also showed that a cruiserweight could win a heavyweight title.

After unifying the cruiserweight titles in his first defense in 2008, Haye overcame formidable height and weight disadvantages to win the WBA heavyweight title from Nicolai Valuev in 2009. Haye defended the heavyweight title twice.

However, it was Holyfield who impressed the most when it came to promotion. He became the undisputed heavyweight champion with a knockout over James Douglas in 1990, two years after Holyfield reigned as the undisputed cruiserweight champion. “The Real Deal” made five defenses of the cruiserweight title, then three successful defenses of the heavyweight title as the undisputed king, and then three consecutive reigns as champion, securing four successful defenses.

Another lighter fighter to move up to heavyweight was Roy Jones Jr., who left the cruiserweight division, jumping up from lightweight heavyweight to defeat John Ruiz for the WBA heavyweight title in a dominant victory in 2003. Jones weighed 193 pounds to Ruiz’s 226 pounds, winning the title six months after breaking the lightweight heavyweight limit.

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Boxing is in his blood

Opetaia comes from a boxing family. His grandfather, Billy (Tapuloa) Opetaia, born in Samoa and living in Novel Zealand, fought as a middleweight in the 1960s. His father, Martin (Tapu) Opetaia, had seven professional fights in the 1990s and 2000s and is currently a boxing trainer. His great-grandfather, Aitula Opetaia, was also a boxer in the 1950s.

Jai continued the family tradition when, at the age of just 17, he represented Australia at the 2012 London Olympics.

Opetaia lost his first heavyweight fight at the ExCel gala, which was won by Oleksandr Usyk. Eleven years later, Opetaia returned to London to defend his IBF cruiserweight title for the first time, defeating Jordan Thompson by fourth-round TKO at Wembley Arena.