Oleksandr Usyk and Jai Opetaia are two of the best active fighters in the world.
Usyk is a former undisputed heavyweight champion who has not yet lost in the ring. He has beaten both Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury twice in back-to-back fights and is also a former undisputed cruiserweight champion.
Right now, Aussie star Opetaia is one of the current cruiserweight rulers and the IBF champion. Two of his hardest fights were against the same man – former three-time champion Mairis Briedis who he beat via unanimous decision in 2022 and again in 2024.
Briedis also took on Usyk at cruiserweight, and the Ukrainian beat him in 2018 by a majority decision in another tough close fight.
Now retired but speaking to NotJustBoxing, Briedis was asked if Usyk was the hardest fight of his career.
“I think no, I think Jai Opetaia was more difficult to fight. Why? Because when I fought Usyk I was younger but most difficult is when you are around 39, 40, your recovery goes very slow, and this is the most important thing for old athletes – recovery, if you can recover, you can work.”
For a while, Usyk teased that he might go back down to cruiserweight to once again take on the likes of Opetaia, but he has since revealed his chief motivation is to become a two-time undisputed heavyweight champion.
His most likely route to that is a rematch with current IBF belt holder Daniel Dubois, whom he has already beaten by KO back in the summer of 2023.
