David Benavidez Still Eyeing A Jai Opetaia Fight

Benavidez bumped into Opetaia after the press conference for his fight, when he hinted at a possible showdown in the future.

“I have a lot of respect for you. You’re a great fighter. I definitely want to get a fight in with you in the future,” he said.

Benavidez is moving up to cruiserweight to challenge Ramírez for his WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles, attempting to become a three-division world champion after previously holding belts at super middleweight and light heavyweight.

As for the future, a bout with Opetaia could very well be considered possible but not guaranteed. Opetaia has even said a fight would only make sense if both fighters won their upcoming bouts, though promotional and business factors could complicate making the matchup.

Talking to reporters later, Benavidez said he sees himself facing Opetaia in the future.

“I have a lot of respect for Opetaia. I got no bad words for him. But I let him know that we’re definitely going to get that fight in the future. Seeing him in person made me want that fight even more. We got a lot of good things coming in the future,” he said.

“A Bit Unrealistic”

Meanwhile, Opetaia has had his name connected with the likes of Oleksandr Usyk for a future heavyweight showdown. Talking to Inside the Ring, Opetaia only had one thing to say about the assumptions.

“I’m chasing undisputed. You know what I mean? And until I tick that undisputed box or, you know, get these unification fights, then, you know, the heavyweight chapter is further down the track,” he said. “And just because everyone keeps bringing up the heavyweight, heavyweight, heavyweight even putting my name with Usyk, I feel like it’s just a bit unrealistic, to be honest. You know what I mean?”