Wilder to Face Opetaia on Fury vs Joshua Undercard in Cardiff

Deontay Wilder will fight Jai Opetaia at heavyweight in Cardiff on December 11, organisers said on Wednesday. The bout is the co-main event on the card headed by Tyson Fury against Anthony Joshua at the Principality Stadium, and it is the first undercard fight officially announced for the event.

The announcement was made on Wednesday morning in the United States by Dana White and Netflix. White, the UFC chief executive and a co-founder of Zuffa Boxing, said the co-main event is officially set. He pointed to the punch power on show, noting that the two men have a combined 67 knockouts, and said fans should not miss the fight, which will be live only on Netflix.

A first heavyweight test for Opetaia

Opetaia, 31, will move up from cruiserweight for this fight. He is unbeaten in 31 professional bouts, with 24 knockouts, and he is a Ring Magazine cruiserweight champion and a previous holder of the IBF cruiserweight championship. This is his first high-level heavyweight fight and his first major fight above the 200 pound cruiserweight division.

In his last fight, in Nevada in September, Opetaia stopped Noel Mikaelian in the ninth round and called out David Benavidez. He is likely to return to cruiserweight after this bout, with Benavidez as his main target.

The size gap is real. Wilder stands 6ft 7in with an 83in reach, while Opetaia stands 6ft 2in with a 76in reach. White, who is also Opetaia's promoter, said it is a very dangerous fight for the Australian considering where he sits in his division right now. But he added that Opetaia is a fighter who will fight anybody, even at heavyweight against a man who hits as hard as Wilder.

Wilder at 41

Wilder, 41, held the WBC heavyweight title from 2015 to 2020. His professional record is 45 wins, four losses and one draw, with 43 knockouts in his 45 wins, a finishing rate that made him one of the hardest punchers in boxing.

His recent form is mixed. He has lost four of his last seven contests, and in his last outing he battled to a points win over British contender Derek Chisora at The O2 in London in April. Wilder also fought a trilogy with Fury, drawing the first fight and losing the next two, so Cardiff puts him back on a Fury card against a champion stepping up a division.

The main event in Cardiff

The Fury against Joshua clash, announced in September, is the first meeting between the two former heavyweight champions. It has been billed as the biggest fight in British boxing history, and tickets sold out within an hour of going on sale last month, British media reported.

The event will stream globally on Netflix on Friday, December 11, from the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Wilder against Opetaia gives the card a co-main event with clear stakes: a former heavyweight champion trying to hold his ground, and an unbeaten cruiserweight champion taking the biggest risk of his career.