Tim Tszyu v Michael Zerafa confirmed: Tszyu 2.0 lands first jab on rival
Tim Tszyu has lobbed the first grenade as the date and venue for his grudge fight against Michael Zerafa is set in stone.
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Tim Tszyu has labelled Michael Zerafa as nothing more than a “YouTube boxer” and Conor McGregor wannabe as their grudge match was finally confirmed.
Tszyu and Zerafa will fight on July 7 at Newcastle Entertainment Centre to settle one of the biggest feuds in Australian boxing.
“He is a little circus act, he is one of those YouTube boxers and he acts the same way,” Tszyu told News Corp.
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“I don’t care who is in front of me, once the bell rings that’s all that matters. All this acting, I’m not worried about, he can do what he wants.
“We’ll see what he brings, but he’s got a lack of respect for sure, and he’s got a very big mouth.
“Another problem he’s got is that he thinks he’s someone he’s not, he thinks he’s Conor McGregor.
“He really thinks it and truly believes it, and that’s the problem. The best thing in boxing is that you get to give them a reality check.”
Zerafa has been chasing a bout with the undefeated Tszyu for 18 months and has finally landed the fight after months of verbally baiting his rival – including confronting Tszyu ringside after his victory over Bowyn Morgan last December at Bankwest Stadium.
Just last week, Zerafa speculated that Tszyu was afraid of taking this fight, saying: “We put out a $1 million offer for him to fight me and there was still no bite.
“What’s Tim’s excuse? There’s money flying around everywhere, he has no overseas options. I think I’m his kryptonite.”
But Tszyu believes Zerafa will panic when they meet in Newcastle, where Tszyu demolished Dennis Hogan in his previous bout in front of a raucous crowd.
“I want him to feel that, the presence, because deep down in that little soul of his, he’ll be panicking,” Tszyu said.
“What I believe is that there’s a soft side in him.
“Everyone has got a soft side in them, but I’m going to expose his soft side. All this acting is not going to work with me.
“I’m going to look through his soul, and I’m going to expose that.”
Tszyu is the WBO No.1 super-welterweight in the world, but the champion, Brian Castano, is fighting a unification bout against WBC, WBA and IBF king Jermell Charlo in July.
Tszyu (18-0, 14KO) is hoping a win against Zerafa (28-4, 17KO) will catapult him into a bout against the unified champion.
Tszyu’s fight against Zerafa will be formally announced on Thursday at 10am, at a press conference to be shown live on Fox Sports News.
It’s on: Tszyu-Zerafa grudge match gets green light
- Peter Badel
Michael Zerafa has promised to knock out Tim Tszyu. Now the ‘Pretty Boy’ will get his golden chance.
Promoters are in the advanced stages of finalising a Tszyu-Zerafa showdown with the warring duo set to trade blows in what the son of Kostya hopes is his final domestic bout before a world-title shot at either Brian Castano or Jermell Charlo.
News Corp can reveal the Tszyu-Zerafa super welterweight contest is scheduled for either July 7 or 14, with the unbeaten Sydneysider (18-0, 14KO) set to return to the Newcastle Entertainment Centre.
Promoters have been exploring a number of venues, including Toowoomba in Queensland, but are keen for Tszyu to revisit the scene of his fifth-round hammering of Dennis Hogan in Newcastle in March.
The Tszyu camp were in talks with Spaniard Sergio Garcia (33-0, 14KO) and that was their preferred path, but the global COVID pandemic is a major impediment to overseas fighters coming to Australia.
That has opened the door for Zerafa (28-4, 17KO), who has consistently called out Tszyu and is ready to drop down a division as he looks to deliver a savage blow to his rival’s world-title prospects.
It is understood the Zerafa camp has agreed to terms with the Melbourne fighter taking part in promotional shots ahead of a formal announcement, which could come as early as this week.
Tszyu’s promoters, No Limit Boxing, confirmed they are on the verge of formalising their client’s 19th professional fight.
“We‘re not quite there yet, we’re still talking,” No Limit chief executive George Rose said of the Zerafa negotiations.
“We are waiting to hear back from one international option, but if that falls through, we‘ll have to look at Zerafa.
“Tim wants to fight and needs to fight and Zerafa is the only Australian opponent worth fighting for Tim.
“We’ve spoken to Fox (broadcasters) and when we spoke to them, they were notified Zerafa is on the list, although he is the last-resort option.
“I would like to have something finalised this week, certainly by next week at the latest.”
The bout will be one of the biggest paydays of Zerafa’s career with the 29-year-old tipped to pocket more than $300,000 by taking on Tszyu, who is in supreme form after clinical back-to-back disposals of Jeff Horn and Hogan in the past eight months.
Zerafa is coming off an embarrassing first-round stoppage of 45-year-old Anthony Mundine and will be confident of upsetting Tszyu given his extra size as a natural middleweight.
Should Tszyu dispose of Zerafa, he will look to attract Castano or Charlo, who will square off in a unification bout in July, to Australia for a world-title shot, potentially at Suncorp Stadium.
“It’s very challenging to source international fighters with the issues around COVID, so having negotiations with opponents overseas is very difficult,” Rose said.
“Zerafa is an acceptable step for Tim. It‘s not his preferred option, but he has to keep fighting and we want Tim to have competitive fights.
“Charlo and Castano are going ahead with their fight in July so it makes sense for Tim to fight at the same time so he is ready to go for a world-title shot.”
Speaking at the Paul Gallen-Lucas Browne heavyweight bout a fortnight ago, Tszyu said he is relishing a showdown with the trash-talking Zerafa.
“It‘s a fight that excites me a little bit, a fight that I want,” Tszyu said.
“He‘s been mouthing off too much, and I’ve always wanted to put him in his place.”
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