Jai Opetaia returned to his homeland and emphatically defended his IBF cruiserweight title by defeating David Nyika in the fourth round at the Gold Coast Convention Center in Queensland.

Opetaia (27-0, 21 KO) entered this fight on the back of a string of wins and in his second stint as IBF champion, this time defending a systematic sixth-round stoppage of Jack Massey in October. Nyika (10-1, 9 KO) had a decorated amateur career, including an Olympic bronze medal and two Commonwealth gold medals, and progressed quickly as a professional with seven straight early wins.

Both fighters launched an attack and in an explosive second round, Opetaia landed a huge left hand that caught the Up-to-date Zealander off guard, but the challenger responded with a left hook of his own that the home favorite seemed to sense.

The 29-year-old quickly shook off this fear and began to take control, and the conclusions did not take long to come.

A right hand hit Nyika difficult and although he got the count down, he was tentative and the combination on the restart left him cool and the fight was over.

Opetaia will now likely seek to unify with the WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion, Gilberto Ramirez.

Huni knocks out Potgeiter

On the card below, Justis Huni further strengthened his credentials by defending his IBF Pan Pacific and WBO Global heavyweight titles by defeating Shaun Potgieter in the second round.

Huni (12-0, 7 KO) launched an attack that sent Potgieter (10-2, 7 KO) retreating to the corner and then releasing both arms before the referee made a wise intervention.

Undercard remaining

Max McIntyre (7-0, 6 KO) won the vacant IBF Youth super middleweight title, stopping Abdulselam Saman (8-2, 1 KO) three times in the fourth round before recording a stoppage victory in the same session.

Ben Mahoney defended the vacant IBF Pan Pacific super welterweight title by defeating Fan Zhang (8-3-1, 5 KO). Mahoney (15-0-1, 8 KO) won all ten rounds on all three cards.

Highly touted heavyweight Teremoana Jnr (6-0, 6 KO) remained the consummate professional and needed less than a round to defeat Osasu Otobo (11-2-1, 5 KO).

The meeting of the undefeated in the super lightweight category ended with the victory of Shauna Browne (5-0, 3 KO), and the Irishwoman won a split decision over ten rounds against Taylah Gentzen (6-1, 3 KO).

The only fighter in the eighth round was a featherweight, with Tony Ingram (6-1, 3 KO) losing his undefeated record in a points loss to Runqi Zhou. The judges declared Zhou (9-2-1, 3 KO) the winner with two scores of 78-74 and a third score of 77-75.

In four rounds, delicate heavyweight prospect Billy McAllister (3-0, 3 KO) scored another early victory, this time in the second round against Jordan Towns (2-3, 1 KO), and middleweight Kodi Shallali (1-1- 1 ) and Albert Tu’ua (1-1-1) could not be separated in a fight that ended in a majority draw.

In the super featherweight debut fight, Jag Guthmann-Chester (1-0) won against Jai Williams (0-1).

David Morrell says he will make David Benavidez “regret every word” he said about him ahead of their lithe heavyweight fight next month.

Benavidez will defend his interim WBC crown against his former super middleweight world champion, Morrell, on February 1 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, live Amazon Prime on pay-per-view.

The pair argued and had to be separated after a near-fight during a media training session last month, with Benavidez suggesting his rival did not want to take part in VADA doping tests.

Morrell warned “Mexican Monster” that the constant back and forth gives him extra motivation and insists that the enemy has been disrespectful to him.

“He constantly called me names and disrespected my name,” the 26-year-old said.

“It doesn’t bother me because words won’t save him when we face each other in the ring.

“All this trash talk just turns me on.

“He will regret every word as I make him eat his pride, blow by blow.”

Benavidez, 28, secured the interim WBC lithe heavyweight belt in his first fight since moving up from 168 pounds won a unanimous decision over Oleksandr Gvozdyk in June, but has since been sidelined with a hand injury.

Morrell also increased his weight by defeating Radivoje Kalajdzic in August, and the Cuban says the victory will cement his position as the best fighter in the division.

“People call him ‘The Mexican Monster,’ but I’m not afraid of monsters – I hunt them!” he added.

“He’s never fought anyone like me, and come fight night he’ll realize I’m faster, stronger and smarter than anyone he’s ever stepped into the ring with.

“This is the moment I’ve been waiting for. It’s a fight that changes everything.

“The victory over Benavidez not only puts me on top, but solidifies me as one of the best fighters in the world.

“After this fight, there will be no doubt who is the king of the division.

“I am ready to accept this crown.”

The winner of Benavidez-Morrell has a chance to win the rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol on February 22.

According to his manager Egis Klimas, current heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk will have a longer break from boxing. The event follows Usyk’s thrilling victory over Tyson Fury last month.

The duo initially clashed in May when Usyk handed Fury his first professional defeat in a fierce battle in Riyad.

In the rematch last month, the Briton put in a good performance, dominating the first rounds. Usyk had a demanding time dealing with his opponent’s jabs and body shots, but the tables turned just before halftime. The Ukrainian’s nimble footwork and blistering speed seemed to catch Fury off guard before he went on to win again.

After playing 24 grueling rounds with the “Gypsy King”, Usyk certainly deserved a break from the sport. Klimas has now said that Usyk needs a few months of rest before returning to the ring.

I’m talking to The boxing sceneKlimas noted: “It will be a very long preparation. After another 12 rounds with Fury, he needs a good, long recovery.”

He further added that Usyk’s return to the ring will likely happen “tardy July or August.”

Usyk is ready to fight the winner of the Daniel Dubois vs. Joseph Parker fight, with the fight expected to take place next month. Following his meeting with Fury, Dubois confronted Usyk as he entered the ring after the fight to express both a compliment and a challenge.

Dubois grabbed the microphone and boldly declared: “I want revenge,” before praising Usyk’s triumph. “I want revenge, Usyk! Good job today, good job. God bless you. I want revenge for the last robbery. Let’s go, let’s go. Make it happen, Frank!”

Usyk did not hesitate to accept the possibility of a rematch. In response he said: “Your Excellency, fight Daniel Dubois. Thank you very much. I can do more. I’m ready to fight (Dubois), no problem. Next fight no problem. Now I want to go home and rest.”