The inaugural Zuffa Boxing cruiserweight title will be on the line when Jai Opetaia clashes with Brandon Glanton on Sunday night at the Meta Apex in Las Vegas.
However, whether Opetaia’s IBF world championship is up for grabs at Zuffa Boxing 4 — and whether he will remain the IBF cruiserweight titleholder come Monday morning — is yet to be determined.
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A spokesperson for the IBF told Uncrowned:
“The IBF is still deliberating on the entirety of the situation regarding Jai Opetaia’s bout vs. Brandon Glanton. We are not making a public statement at this time.”
Zuffa Boxing — the entity formed by Saudi Arabian fight financier Turki Alalshikh, UFC CEO Dana White and WWE president Nick Khan — inked Opetaia to a promotional deal in January. The move came as a surprise because Zuffa does not recognize boxing’s four sanctioning bodies, namely the WBA, WBC, WBO and IBF.
Opetaia, however, has insisted that his goal is still to pick up the belts and become undisputed champion under Zuffa. The Australian has since admitted he isn’t sure how this will happen due to Zuffa’s policies.
Uncrowned spoke to Zuffa-signed heavyweight contender Efe Ajagba just days after his TKO win over Charles Martin in February on Zuffa Boxing 3, and Ajagba too was unclear on whether he could fight for sanctioning body titles. After being pressed, Ajagba admitted that it was ultimately Zuffa’s decision.
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“It depends on who [Zuffa] work with,” Ajagba told Uncrowned. “Zuffa is trying to grow their own belt. I don’t know about the [sanctioning bodies]. I want those belts, but at the same time, I’ve signed with Zuffa. It’s Zuffa’s decision to make for those belts.”
It is thought that the IBF and Zuffa have yet to reach an agreement on whether Opetaia’s title can be on the line and how it would be displayed and supervised during fight week and on fight night. Zuffa — and its parent company TKO — is reluctant to cooperate with sanctioning bodies, with WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman recently detailing to Uncrowned his unpleasant experience during the TKO-promoted Terence Crawford vs. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez bout.
According to IBF Rule 5.H., Opetaia will be stripped of his cruiserweight championship if he fights Glanton at the 200-pound cruiserweight limit and the bout is not sanctioned for the IBF championship.
“If a Champion participates in an unsanctioned contest within his prescribed weight limit, the title will be declared vacant whether the Champion wins or loses the bout.”
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