David Nyika is set to surprise even himself when he fights for the IBF world cruiserweight title but the manager of defending champion Jai Opetaia has warned him not to keep “poking the bear”.
“If he is going to get under Jai’s skin, which he is starting to, the fight might not last long. When you poke the bear, the bear bites,” Michael Francis told AAP.
“I know what Jai is like. Jai is happy to box if he wants to box. If he wants to bang and bring it, then Jai will bang. Jai will find a chink in his armour.”
Opetaia will defend his world IBF and Ring Magazine titles on Wednesday at a sold-out Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Nyika, 29, was confident of bringing down former sparring partner Opetaia on the Gold Coast.
“I have nothing but respect for Jai. I think he is a great champion. I am going to turn up and do what I do best. That is fight and that is to win,” Nyika said.
“I have looked up to him since I was 15. We went to the junior world titles together. He won a gold medal in the 80-kilo division. I was 60 kilos back then.
“Jai doesn’t do anything badly so I have to turn up and do what I do best. If I put my best foot forward I will win on the night.”
World number 10 Nyika (10-0) and Opetaia (26-0) enter the contest with perfect records.
New Zealander Nyika, who lives west of Brisbane at Gatton, knows this is by far his biggest test yet but is in career-best shape.
“What I am happy with is that I don’t know what David is going to turn up on the night, because I have never seen this David before,” Nyika said.
“This is a new and improved David Nyika. I have never been in this kind of shape before.
“Physically and mentally I am in the best condition I have ever been in. This fight has come at a pretty opportune time for me. I know I am the underdog but this is my time to shine.”
Meanwhile, Australia’s great heavyweight hope Justis Huni will fight through pain again when he defends his IBO Global title against a South African opponent known as “God’s Warrior”.
Undefeated Huni (11-0) and Shaun Potgieter (10-1) will fight on Wednesday at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre as the prelude to the IBF cruiserweight world title fight.
Huni, 25, has two bone chips in an elbow for which he will undergo surgery after the Potgieter clash.
“I will deal with it after the fight. I am not worried about it right now,” Huni told AAP.
“I am focused on getting the job done. It’s just a little elbow injury so I don’t over-think it. It is what it is. It comes and goes but it is good enough to go on the night.”
Huni, ranked number five in the world by the WBO and number 13 and 15 respectively with the IBF and WBC, stopped Argentina’s Leandro Daniel Robutti in the second round on December 11 in Brisbane.
He hopes to keep clocking up the wins and then challenge for a world title inside two years.
“That’s the goal. I want to headline shows like this,” Huni said.
“It is awesome to have someone like Jai to look up to and follow in those footsteps. It is up to me now to get the job done.”
AAP
