Jai Opetaia's manager Mick Francis claims the Australian cruiserweight star will "sacrifice half his purse" in order to arrange a long-desired showdown with Gilberto Ramirez on his path to world title unification.
The undefeated Opetaia (27-0) returns to the ring on Sunday as he squares off against unbeaten Italian Claudio Squeo to defend his IBF and The Ring belts on the Gold Coast.
While Opetaia's primary focus is avoiding an upset against the talented Squeo, the 29-year-old has not lost sight of his desire to unify the cruiserweight division despite the endless stumbling blocks he's encountered since being crowned IBF champion three years ago.
Opetaia has made no secret of his ambition to fight Mexican southpaw Ramirez, who currently holds the WBO and WBA straps which he is set to defend against Yuneil Dorticus at the end of June, while there have been growing calls for Badou Jack to unify his WBC title in a complex cruiserweight division landscape.
Rumours regarding a potential showdown between Opetaia and Ramirez on the Terence Crawford-Canelo Alvarez card have intensified of late, and Opetaia's manager Francis is hopeful terms can be agreed with Ramirez's US-based Golden Boy Promotions.
"I'll rally the troops. Jai's already said he'll sacrifice half his purse to make this fight," Francis told the AAP.
"For this one it's not about the money, it's about the belts and leaving a legacy.
It doesn't matter where it is; he'll fight him on the moon if he has to.
One man who sympathises with Opetaia's frustrating situation is Terence Crawford, who had spent some time in the Australian's training camp ahead of the Squeo bout.
Crawford, who is aiming to become boxing's first three-weight undisputed champion when he encounters Alvarez later this year, is extremely educated on the political battles in the sport and the 37-year-old has urged Opetaia to keep pushing for unification.
"When you're at the top and a threat, those big names avoid you," Crawford added.
"I tell him to keep his head up, keep working hard and don't give up. Keep trying to unify and keep being yourself.
"Everybody knows he's tough and he can punch and he can fight.
"A lot of people don't want to take the chance of getting in there with him and taking a loss."
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