From undercards to main events
Forget the year of the dragon, 2024 was supposed to be the year of Australian combat sports. It was supposed to be a year when established stars became champions, champions became icons, and revenge arcs were completed.
And if you only scratched the surface of boxing and MMA coverage this year, youd be left lamenting a year of heart-crushing setbacks and missed opportunities. For many, the past 12 months have felt like a backwards step for Australians in combat sports, as weve primarily fixated on the many who have suffered defeats and slid down global rankings.
Of course, Tim Tszyu provided two of the years biggest disappointments. The son of Hall of Famer Kostya could be excused for relinquishing his WBO light middleweight title to Sebastian Fundora in March when a nasty cut opened above his right eye and the flowing blood impacted his vision, but Octobers lethargic and timid effort against little known Bakhram Murtazaliev waved goodbye to any opportunity of fighting some of the boxings biggest names, as had been put on the agenda for 2025.
Australias combat underdogs set
It leaves Tszyu, a man who not so long ago appeared on course to be tracking towards legendary Australian boxing status, in limbo, unsure of his next step. Rumour has swirled that Tszyu could be in line for an Australian return to fight the polarising Michael Zerafa, someone who was also humbled on his trip to the United States earlier in the year.
Rewind a month further and youll remember the George Kambosos-Vasiliy Lomachenko bloodbath. That fight, staged at RAC Arena in Perth, was billed as one of the biggest bouts to ever take place on Australian soil, yet it turned out to be as one-sided an affair as could be, with the future Hall of Famer Lomachenko dominating the local for 11 rounds.
The man leading that charge is Jai Opetaia. The 29-year-old bruiser from Sydney is the No. 1 ranked cruiserweight on the planet, having built a perfect 26-0 record since turning professional in 2015, but few would likely know it. Opetaia took hold of the ring and IBF world titles with his victory over Mairis Briedis in July 2022 and has successfully defended those straps four times, including twice this year.
