"Let’s have a gun fight” - Jai Opetaia fires back at David Nyika’s KO prediction and dares him to trade punches

Jai Opetaia and David Nyika are set to clash on Jan. 8 for the IBF and The Ring cruiserweight world titles. The champion will walk out to a packed home crowd, as the bout takes place in Australia, with the Kiwi title challenger entering enemy territory.

Nyika has shared a bold prediction for fight night, stating that he will knock out his opponent in the later rounds of the bout. His prediction has drawn a fiery response from the 26-0 champion, as he shared some words with his less experienced counterpart when they came face-to-face.

The pair recently shared a face-to-face discussion on Sporting News Australia, where Opetaia said the following:

"I know I can knock him out. I know that. I know I can hurt him. With these little gloves it's a very dangerous game. You want to have a gun fight? Let's have a gun fight. But I know it's not going to be a gun fight. He's gonna box, he doesn't want to get hit. It's gonna be a chess match."

He continued:

"So let's go there, let's play it. 12 rounds of war. I'm ready for it. He's saying [he's] been preparing for me and stuff like that. Bro, I'm prepared for anyone. I don't have my goals set on anyone. I just train and focus on myself."

Check out Jai Opetaia's pre-fight comments below (4:40):

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Jai Opetaia shuts down talks of David Nyika finding success against him in sparring

Jai Opetaia and David Nyika both hail from Australia, and having both risen to the pinnacle of the sport, the pair have shared sparring sessions in the past.

Ahead of their cruiserweight world title fight set for Jan. 8, brief details of their sparring sessions have come to light. Nyika himself hinted that he was "getting the better" of Opetaia, which caused a stir in the boxing world.

Given the dominance displayed over his past few fights, the IBF and The Ring world champion has been labeled as arguably the most in-form boxer on the planet right now.

During a recent interview with Jai McAllister, the Australian addressed the discussions surrounding his sparring sessions with Nyika. He said:

"Sparring is sparring. They're for conditioning. I spar under load. I [do] three sessions on a Tuesday and then spar on a Wednesday. Sparring is sparring, it's more rounds, [kilometers] in the legs. When you fight, you fight. You fight to win... it's a different beast."

Check out Jai Opetaia's comments below (1:20):