Jack Massey Unimpressed By Jai Opetaia’s Record: ‘Look At Who He’s Fought’

Jack Massey has described Saturday’s opponent Jai Opetaia as a “very good fighter” but called into question the IBF cruiserweight champion’s professional record.
European champion Massey (22-2-0 12 KO) challenges for a major world title for the first time when he fights Opetaia (25-0-0 19 KO) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on the undercard of the undisputed light-heavyweight world title bout between Artur Beterbiev and Dimitrii Bivol.
Opetaia is widely regarded as the best fighter of the 200-pound division, and while Massey has plenty of respect for the Australian, the British fighter believes his record is lacking big names aside from the two title victories over former champion Mairis Breidis, who was at the end of his career.
“Watching him, you can’t take it away from him that he’s a very good fighter,” Massey said. “He looks good. But if you look at who he’s fought, it’s only really been Breidis twice, hasn’t it? Coming to the back end of his career.
“But you can’t take away the fact that when you watch him fighting, you can see that he’s a very, very good fighter. You can’t go in there underestimating him thinking he’s only fought over-the-hill fighters. You can tell he’s a good fighter and he’s very good at what he does.”
Opetaia first became world champion by defeating then-IBF title holder Breidis in July 2022, overcoming a broken jaw to win a tight contest on points. He was soon stripped of the title for failing to fight the Latvian in a rematch but did reclaim the vacant title when the pair did eventually meet again in May in Riyadh. The Australian was largely in control of the rematch although he did need to weather a final-round storm to take the decision.
“That’s why he gets a lot of critics,” Massey said. “Because obviously a lot of people buy into him. They like him. They like his style and how he is outside the ring. Obviously, that also brings critics on board to come to the table and say, ‘Well, who’s he actually fought?’ so he’s got to prove himself a little bit more.
“But people get excited, don’t they? They hear the sparring stories and they watch him fight and stuff and start putting labels on him to be the next this and that. So, time will tell when Jack Massey gets in with him.”
Massey will be a heavy underdog on Saturday, but the 31-year-old enters the bout in good form. He became a two-time European champion with a fine performance against Isaac Chamberlain in June, and in January 2023, provided a firm test on his heavyweight debut against former world champion Joseph Parker.
The opportunity against Parker came when Massey was close to giving up boxing and was working in construction to pay the bills. But even after his return to the big-time, he had to wait another year for his next fight, which lasted just one round against Steve Eloundou Ntere in a low-key six-rounder.
This year is looking much brighter for Massey; he has taken full advantage of Opetaia’s failed pursuit of WBO champion Chris Billam-Smith and actively chased the Australian for a world title shot.
“There was a few times,” Massey said about how close he came to walking away from boxing. “There were some promotional issues around that time and I had to get back to work. It was like, ‘I’ve been in this game nearly 10 years and I’m back on a scaffold. What am I doing this for?’
“But at the end of the day, it’s all I know. It’s pretty sad to say, but I’ve not got any qualifications or anything else. What am I going to do? If I do stop now, without any money in the bank, it’s like going back to the factory where I worked 10 years ago.
“People my age, in their 30s, they’ve either got their own business or they’re qualified plasterers or mechanics or whatever. It’s a long way back down and it was a bit frightening and a bit scary to be honest, but I just knew that if I stuck to it, it would always come.”