David Nyika will encounter a former title challenger for his first DAZN headliner.
The 2020 Olympic Bronze medalist is set to face Australia’s Blake Caparello in a scheduled twelve-round cruiserweight contest. The matchup was confirmed during a press conference held Wednesday to formally announce the Sept. 14 DAZN event at Viaduct Events Centre in Auckland, New Zealand.
“David will have to prove that he is a cut above those that have gone down this path before,” said David Higgins, Nyika’s promoter. “Boxing aficionados had huge wraps on guys like Robbie ‘The Butcher’ Berridge, Dan MacKinnon and Reece Papanui and those guys ended up being totally outclassed.
“[Caparello] took on one of the most feared fighters of a generation in Sergey Kovalev and sat him on his backside in the opening round.”
The hard sell notwithstanding, Nyika (9-0, 8 knockouts) is now presented with his most notable name to date. The unbeaten New Zealander—now based in Queensland—has yet to be extended beyond the fifth round. He took out former secondary titlist Robert Berridge (30-11-1, 22 KOs) inside of three rounds in what was meant as a step up last November.
In his most recent start, Nyika stopped Michael Seitz in the fourth round on the May 18 Oleksandr Usyk-Tyson Fury undercard in Riyadh. He now expects a more formidable challenge for his first fight in Auckland since his Feb. 2021 pro debut.
“No disrespect to any of those Kiwi boys who took on Caparello and got beaten,” Nyika said. “They are all great fighters in their own right – but none of them are me. To me, Blake Caparello is just another step on the road to a world title.”
Caparello (32-4-1, 15 KOs), 37, has only been stopped once in 37 pro fights.
It came in his Aug. 2014 WBO 175-pound title challenge versus Kovalev, whom he dropped in the first round. Kovalev stormed back to stop Caparello in the second round of their battle of unbeaten light heavyweights.
Caparello enters riding a modest two-fight win streak as he steps back well up in competition. The fight takes place a full division past his effective weight but feels it’s Nyika who is in over his head.
“Nyika is untested as a professional, he hasn’t gone past five rounds yet,” stated Caparello. “I’ve been 10 and 12 rounds more than a dozen times against the world’s best. I’ve headlined shows on ESPN and HBO in America.
“Let’s see what he’s got when the going gets tough.”
The fight is the first under a multi-fight deal with DAZN through Duco Events, Thornberry Promotions and Parker Promotions. The latter entity is headed by former WBO heavyweight titlist Joseph Parker, the current interim titleholder who makes his promotional debut.
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The post David Nyika Set To Face Blake Caparello Atop Sept. 14 DAZN Show In Auckland appeared first on The Ring.
