Insider Reveals Why IBF Withdrew Jai Opetaia Sanctioning Days Before Zuffa Boxing 04

The IBF's involvement in the Zuffa Boxing 04 main event has dominated headlines throughout the week. After initially sanctioning Jai Opetaia's title defense against Brandon Glanton, the organization reversed course just two days before the fight.

The last-minute decision led to an uproar from fans, particularly given the IBF's controversial history with Opetaia. The organization determined it would withdraw its sanctioning of the Opetaia-Glanton matchup due to feeling "disrespected" by the Zuffa Boxing promotion, according to boxing reporter Dan Rafael.

"The IBF pulled sanction and sent supervisor home after presser because IBF president Daryl Peoples felt disrespected by how the belt was positioned as secondary to the Zuffa belt at presser, even though Jai had the belt prominently displayed and was holding it during the face-off," Rafael tweeted. "Peoples wrote in an email to officials saying that was why the title sanction was being pulled. Said he was very disappointed."

The IBF said Opetaia told its representatives that the Zuffa Boxing title would be "characterized as a trophy or token of recognition" in its announcement. They appeared willing to sanction the fight only if their title was framed as the premier belt, with the promotional championship viewed as a secondary award.

Per source, the IBF pulled sanction and sent supervisor home after presser because IBF president Daryl Peoples felt disrespected by how the belt was positioned as secondary to the Zuffa belt at presser even though Jai had the belt prominently displayed and was holding it during…
— Dan Rafael (@DanRafael1) March 7, 2026

Opetaia has been the IBF and The Ring champion since 2022, when he claimed both belts with a unanimous decision win over Mairis Breidis. The IBF stripped him of the title in 2023, but he took it back with another win over Breidis the following year.

Jai Opetaia, Brandon Glanton still headlining Zuffa Boxing 04

Opetaia is the first champion to sign with Zuffa Boxing, which previously claimed it would "get rid of" the sanctioning bodies. However, Dana White changed his stance after signing Opetaia, saying he would help the lineal cruiserweight champion achieve his goal of becoming undisputed.

Zuffa Boxing announced that Opetaia and Glanton would be fighting for the first-ever Zuffa Boxing World Championship title when they released the matchup in February. The initial announcement did not mention Opetaia's IBF title, raising suspicion that the belt might not be on the line in the matchup.

However, ensuing social media posts and promotional content featured Opetaia with the IBF and The Ring titles after both organizations sanctioned the bout. Opetaia even confirmed that his IBF belt would be on the line against Glanton at the Zuffa Boxing 04 presser, just hours before the federation changed its decision.

ALL 👏 UP 👏 FOR 👏 GRABS 👏 pic.twitter.com/618AQF4MsY
— Zuffa_Boxing (@Zuffa_Boxing) March 7, 2026

Regardless of the IBF's latest decision, Opetaia and Glanton are still headlining Zuffa Boxing 04 with a pair of belts on the line. The IBF did not mention if it would strip Opetaia or allow him to retain the cruiserweight title.