Hearn wants Jay Obitaya for Usyk: Is this a joke or the new reality of boxing?

Promoter Eddie Hearn wants his fighter, IBF cruiserweight champion Jay Obitaya, to be the next opponent against unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk to defend his titles.

It would be 100% unfair to the top contenders in the heavyweight division if Opetaia was allowed to fight Usyk for his WBA, WBC and WBO world titles without getting the opportunity by defeating the contenders. What a sick joke, so wrong for this sport.

From Hearn’s perspective, it’s understandable why he would want to give his fighter Obitaya a title shot against Usyk. It’s money. He has no one else in his Matchroom team to fight Usyk after he knocked out his main fighter Anthony Joshua twice, causing him to have a mental breakdown in the ring after his second defeat.

Hearn would be laughing if he made a play to get local heavyweight Johnny Fisher to challenge Usyk for his three belts after the performance he put in against Dave Allen last week. Other than Opetaia at cruiserweight, Fischer is the only one Hearn has. He won’t let Joshua fight Usyk and have him ruin his plans for the “Fight of Britain” money fight against Tyson Fury.

that it A A self-serving move For Hearn’s part, he wants Obitaya (26-0, 20 KO) to step up and get over the line against top contenders Martin Bacolli, Ajit Kapil and Joseph Parker, without establishing himself as one of those guys to actually win the title. shot.

It’s a circus, and it fits with Francis Ngannou getting a straight shot at Tyson Fury and challenging Dereck Chisora ​​for a world title after losing three out of four fights. Allowing Opetaia to jump ahead of heavyweight contenders to fight Usyk for his three world titles makes a mockery of the sport but shows what’s important: money.

Obitaya, 29, looked awful in his narrow win over Mairis Briedis on May 18, running around the ring, looking scared when the 39-year-old started to pressure him. I got a glimpse of who Opetaia really is over the last four rounds of the fight. He is someone who is fine when he has a passive fighter in front of him, but when he is relentlessly attacked by a powerful puncher, he turns into a scared lamb.

“I think Obitaya’s style is a great fight. The only fight I see is Obitaya vs. Usyk. I just think it’s a good style match. But Gay has to earn his stripes as well in that fight. He should win next week,” Eddie Hearn said. “And then maybe he has to join forces against (Gilberto) Ramirez.” EFL TV On his desire for Oleksandr Usyk to fight his fighter, IBF cruiserweight champion Jay Obitaya.

“Then, as he progresses, he can compete at the weight level. It’s a great fight, but he’s got to keep building his profile. But I don’t see a lot of fights that really excite me for Usyk. He’s done it all. Who else is there to beat?,” Hearn said. About Obitaya.

If Hearn wants Obitaya to challenge Usyk for his world titles, he needs to make the Australian fight with these four:

1. Martin Bacoli
2. Daniel Dubois
3. Bakhadir Jalalov
4. I came from tribes

If Opetaia can come through this mini-challenge victorious, he will have earned a title shot against Usyk. Otherwise, he needs to go back to where he came from, get back into the cruiserweight clay, and fight dull, obscure fighters that casual fans have never heard of and will never care about.

Obitaya will defend his IBF title against replacement challenger David Nica (10-0, 9 KOs) on January 8 at the Gold Coast Convention Centre, Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia. The fight will be shown live on DAZN. Nika is a replacement for the injured Huseyin Sinkara.