Nikita Tszyu fight on offer for new headliner Viliami Liavaa if he beats Anton Markovic

They’ve been handed a surprise headline fight, and there could be another reward for Viliami Liavaa or Anton Markovic when the two collide on Wednesday night.

From South Auckland, to Bairnsdale, to a shock headline fight in Sydney and – possibly – into an Australian title fight with Nikita Tszyu.

It’s been a wild couple of days for New Zealand-born Victorian Viliami Liavaa.

The 6-1 fighter, who moved to Australia two years ago, had been preparing for an undercard bout with Sydney’s Anton Markovic this Wednesday.

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But after a dramatic few hours on Tuesday, the fight is now the card’s main event.

The wild change happened after Renold Quinlan missed weight by 4.8kg for his scheduled headliner against Bilal Akkawy.

Akkawy’s furious camp pulled their fighter out of the bout when Quinlan said he couldn’t lose any more weight on Tuesday.

As a result, Queensland heavyweight Troy Pilcher stepped in on late notice to fight Quinlan, and the bout was dropped down the card.

Viliami Liavaa weighs in ahead of his fight with Anton Markovic. Picture: No Limit Boxing

Those developments propelled Liavaa and Markovic – neither of whom have fought on TV before – into the new main event.

The laidback Liavaa was tucking into a big breakfast after the weigh-ins when he found out he’d been promoted to the headline fight.

“It’s been crazy, but I’m just taking it as it comes,” he told this masthead. “It’s crazy, eh, I’ve never fought on TV.”

And a solid performance could even see the 22-year-old concreter book a title fight with Nikita Tszyu next month.

“He’s a good fighter, he’s gonna go a long way, but whenever his name comes across the table, I’m definitely going to jump at the opportunity to fight him,” he said. “I get to see where my skills is at.

“I’m confident in what I have, but we’ll have to wait and see. If we end up having a fight, we’ll fight.”

Markovic hitting the scales. Picture: No Limit Boxing

Markovic, though, has other plans.

A former state-level swimming star who ditched swimming laps for throwing jabs the day he walked into a boxing gym, says he wants the shot against Tszyu.

“I’d love to get a fight with Nikita. Getting that fight would bring the very best out of me,” he said.

“Up until now, his whole career he’s fought good opposition on the Australian scene. He had a good test against Dylan Biggs.

“It’s not out of the realm of possibility a fight between me and him.”

Nikita Tszyu is looking for an opponent. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Markovic also warned Liavaa not to get too far ahead of himself planning on a PPV showdown with Tszyu, which could come as soon as next month.

“They can’t overlook me, and they know that I have the skills to create doubt in his mind,” he said. “They won’t be taking this fight lightly.

“I will put on a damn good show. For me, it’s the experience of getting in there and taking on top tier opponents at that level under immense pressure of being in the main event.

“I’ve seen this guy fight before, he throws flashy combos and he’s pretty slick, so I just have to watch out for his overhand right and stay cautious and I think I can get the stoppage.”

Originally published as Nikita Tszyu fight on offer for new headliner Viliami Liavaa if he beats Anton Markovic