Deontay Wilder will fight Jai Opetaia on the undercard of Tyson Fury v Anthony Joshua in December, the BBC reported. The bout will be the co-main event. The long-awaited all-British heavyweight clash puts the WBA 'super' heavyweight title on the line at Cardiff's Principality Stadium.
Opetaia, 31, is the unbeaten WBA 'regular' cruiserweight champion. He will step up to heavyweight for the first time. His record stands at 31-0 with 24 knockouts. Wilder, 41, is 45-4-1 with 43 knockouts. He held the WBC heavyweight title from 2015 to 2020.
The BBC described Wilder as one of the most feared punchers of his generation. He hopes to re-establish himself among the heavyweight elite. He has lost two of his last four fights but beat Briton Derek Chisora on a split decision in April. A win would make him the first professional to beat Opetaia.
Wilder has history with both headliners. He fought a trilogy with Fury, drawing once and losing twice. He also came close to facing Joshua, but a knockout loss to China's Zhilei Zhang in June 2024 derailed that fight.
Opetaia is a former IBF champion and has dominated cruiserweight for years. His move to Zuffa Boxing has brought complications, according to the BBC. He stopped WBC champion Noel Mikaelian in September but could not claim the belt because of a sanctioning dispute. A cruiserweight fight with David Benavidez could still happen if the Mexican wins his three-belt unification bout with Michal Cieslak.
Tickets for the main event sold out in under an hour. Ringwalks are expected around 01:00 GMT on Saturday, December 12, after a short live music performance. The stadium will stay open until 03:30. The rest of the undercard is still to be announced. Wales' former IBF super-featherweight champion Joe Cordina is thought to be negotiating a fight with Manny Pacquiao.