Jai Opetaia fully embraced the familiar surroundings of Broadbeach’s Gold Coast Convention Centre.

It was the site where he dethroned Mairis Briedis (28-3, 20 KOs) to become The Ring and IBF cruiserweight champion. The intimate locale will now represent his fifth championship defense, versus New Zealand’s David Nyika this Wednesday on DAZN.

Four championship defenses separate the trips home for Sydney’s Opetaia (26-0, 22 KOs)—one in England and three in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“It’s good to be here,” Opetaia said during Monday’s final pre-fight press conference. “Good to be back in Australia, home soil. It’s been a long time coming. We’ve done a lot of international travel, a lot of international fights, so we’re not new to these big stages anymore.

“This feels like another day in the office. We’re meant to be here.”

There was a minor obstacle to clear before proceeding with Wednesday’s event.

Opetaia was originally due to face IBF mandatory challenger Huseyin Cinkara, who suffered a broken ankle during a mid-December sparring session and was forced to withdraw.

Nyika (10-0, 9 KOs) answered the call without hesitation, to produce a domestic rivalry that has forged an even bigger event.

The task at hand remains the same for Opetaia, regardless of opponent. The bout will represent his fifth consecutive defense of The Ring championship and third of the IBF belt spanning two separate alphabet title reigns.

Nyika represents the third unbeaten opponent that Opetaia will have faced during that stretch, along with his two-fight set with Brieidis.

“I believe that all my last opponents have [aimed to become champion],” noted Opetaia. “I’ve sat down and had table faces and stuff with them and they’ve all had that fire in their eye. They’ve all believed that this is their time to become a world champion.

“Just like I believe this is another stepping stone to my journey to greatness, to becoming the undisputed. But without getting the job done on the 8th, it all means nothing. So I must win.”