A Queensland world champion boxer has secured a major victory in a bitter legal stoush with a renowned fight promoter, with a court being told the contractual dispute could have resulted in his world title being stripped.
Lawyers for Jai Opetaia – who claimed the International Boxing Federation (IBF) Cruiserweight world title on the Gold Coast last November – argued against an application by fight promoter Dean Lonergan to keep him locked into a contractual arrangement with his company.
Mr Opetaia secured the first major blow in the legal fight after a judge dismissed the application – effectively freeing him to pursue other contractual opportunities.
“We’re excited to start the next chapter,” Mr Opetaia said outside court on Friday.
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“We’re happy to put this behind us and move forward.
“It’s been pretty stressful … this next chapter is going to be huge, I just can’t wait to kick it off.”
The court action was sparked when Mr Opetaia attempted to leave his contract with Mr Lonergan’s company D and L Events after the latter lost its TV deal with Fox Sports.
Mr Lonergan is a well-known events promoter who promoted the massive 2017 bout between Jeff Horn and Manny Pacquiao.
During Friday’s hearing, Supreme Court Justice Martin Burns questioned if the application was something he could weigh in his discretion.
He queried whether the dispute would not be “resolved” even if the injunction was granted.
Brisbane Supreme Court was told Mr Opetaia faced a “dire” risk of having his world title stripped.
Lawyers for D and L Events told the court the application was “only for relief” and both parties wanted a trial “expeditiously”.
They said Mr Opetaia had another 18 months left in his contract.
Barrister Franco Corsaro SC, acting for Mr Opetaia, submitted there was no prima facie case to the injunction order being sought.
He said there was no “language of mandate” in his client’s agreement, telling the court it was not clear how many fights Mr Opetaia was required to fight while under the contractual agreement.
“It simply doesn’t work,” he said of the contract.
Justice Burns ultimately dismissed the application.
Outside court, Mr Corsaro told media: “They tried to injunct Jai and they lost – the court wasn’t satisfied an injunction was warranted.”
“The injunction was to stop him from signing with anyone else.”
Mr Opetaia rose to prominence last year defeating Latvian Mairis Briedis in a brutal bout on the Gold Coast to seal his champion status.
During the fight, Mr Opetaia shattered his jaw so badly he couldn’t speak after the victory.
He is expected to defend this title in Melbourne next month.
Renowned American boxing magazine The Ring has ranked Mr Opetaia as the world’s best active cruiserweight fighter.
— NCA Newswire