Jai Opetaia sues IBF over title stripping, alleges conspiracy to punish him for Zuffa Boxing signing

Jai Opetaia has filed a lawsuit against the IBF, accusing the sanctioning body of unlawfully stripping him of its cruiserweight title after he signed a promotional deal with Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing.

In a 123-paragraph complaint filed on July 14 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, Opetaia alleges the IBF conspired with other sanctioning bodies and prominent figures in the sport to retaliate against him for joining Zuffa Boxing and to deter other fighters from following suit.

Read the opening of the lawsuit obtained by Uncrowned:

“Corruption, backroom dealings, and industry-wide collusion in the sport of boxing sound like movie clichés, but unfortunately for world champion and Plaintiff Jai Opetaia they are very real.”

Opetaia is seeking reinstatement as IBF cruiserweight champion, damages, attorneys’ fees and costs, and an injunction preventing the sanctioning body from naming a new cruiserweight champion while the litigation is pending.

Jai Opetaia lost his IBF cruiserweight world title outside of the ring.

(Chris Hyde via Getty Images)

The Australian signed with Zuffa Boxing in January, and was scheduled to make his promotional debut against Brandon Glanton on March 8. The artwork and press release for Opetaia’s bout with Glanton indicated that the contest would be for the “Zuffa World Cruiserweight Championship,” making no mention of Opetaia’s position as IBF champion.

After initially denying a request to sanction the bout, the IBF ultimately approved it after allegedly receiving reassurances that “Zuffa Boxing … will not bill or otherwise promote the bout as a ‘unification,” also stating that “[any] belt awarded will be characterized as a trophy or token of recognition.”

Two days before the fight, however, the IBF reversed course and withdrew sanctioning of the contest after it allegedly became apparent to the sanctioning body that Opetaia vs. Glanton would still be for the “Zuffa World Cruiserweight Championship.” Opetaia went ahead with the fight and was later stripped of his title.

In the complaint, however, Opetaia alleges the IBF had no intention of honoring its approval. He claims the sanctioning body had been “planning a scheme to inflict the maximum amount of reputational and financial harm” on him in retaliation for signing with Zuffa Boxing.

The lawsuit alleges the conspiracy involved boxing’s three other major sanctioning bodies — the WBA, WBC and WBO — their presidents Gilberto Mendoza, Mauricio Sulaiman and Gustavo Olivieri, and Opetaia’s former promoter Eddie Hearn, among others. It is claimed that evidence supporting this conspiracy exists in group text messages and WhatsApp conversations.

The complaint points to comments made by Hearn before the bout in which he said the sanctioning bodies would “make a stance sooner than you think” and that Opetaia would be stripped, alleging the remarks foreshadowed the IBF’s decision.

Opetaia also alleges the IBF violated the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act by accepting his $73,000 sanctioning fee before making the disclosures required to the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

The lawsuit claims the IBF’s decision to strip Opetaia damaged his earning potential and prevented lucrative future bouts. It cites unified cruiserweight champion David Benavidez’s public comments that he was no longer interested in fighting Opetaia after the Australian lost his title, and also alleges the WBC attempted to block Opetaia’s proposed fight with its champion Noel Mikaelian by ordering Mikaelian to face Benavidez in a “near-unprecedented order.”

The complaint states:

“The IBF’s actions violate the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act (“Ali Act”) and constitute fraud, breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant, intentional interference with contractual relations, and conspiracy.

“Jai seeks the return of his rightful IBF cruiserweight championship title and financial compensation for the harm he has suffered and continues to suffer. In the meantime, Jai is entitled to injunctive relief preventing the IBF from naming a new cruiserweight title champion or holding any bout for the IBF cruiserweight title

The IBF did not immediately respond to Uncrowned’s request for comment.

Read the full article here