Tszyu v Hogan: Hogan’s tongue almost cut in half by Tszyu blow
Tim Tszyu’s opponent Dennis Hogan has been hospitalised after suffering a gruesome injury in last night’s big fight in Newcastle. Latest here.
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Tim Tszyu hit Dennis Hogan with such force when he dropped him with a left uppercut, it nearly sliced the Irishman’s tongue in half.
Hogan faces surgery and a long stretch without solid food following the horrific injury, yet was still able to rise to his feet, such is his toughness.
Tszyu’s follow-up assault in round five saw Hogan’s corner throw in the towel, the right call, particularly in hindsight when it was discovered he had an enormous gash from the front of his tongue to the back for which he required treatment in a Newcastle hospital.
While Tszyu felt empathetic towards Hogan upon learning of the injury on Wednesday night, he revealed the ruthlessness of his mentality upon assessing his handiwork on Thursday morning.
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“Once I started breaking him down to the body, I could see his face change, his eyes change, his sound when he was breathing inside – I wasn’t letting him off at all,” Tszyu said.
“I was in his face the whole night. You can suck the life out of anyone doing that. People say ‘You had a bad day’, it’s not because he’s having a bad day, it’s because I’m making him have a bad day.
“I had a little scratch on my face [the cut above the left eye], but this guy was getting hunted. I was in killer mode.”
A thunderous body assault in the third and fourth rounds had Hogan visibly shook, before the end came in round five.
“He is a fighter, he’s going to stay on his feet no matter what,” Tszyu said.
“The reason I landed the knockdown punch was because of the set-up, everything I do is for a specific reason, every punch I throw is methodical, and everything turned out the way I wanted to in the end.
“I knew what he was going to bring, I knew his defence is good, he brings out different stuff.
“He’s a crafty fighter, he’s been in there with the best.
“I was a bit excited and wanted to knock him out a bit too early, I needed to take my time a little bit more.
“But look, five rounds, I’m not complaining about that.”
While Tszyu wants to compete with the big dogs and champions of the super-welterweight division, COVID-19 restrictions and boxing politics will make it difficult for him to land a world title shot next.
It is more likely Tszyu Tszyu (18-0, 14KO) – the WBO No.1 challenger – will face Australian nemesis Michael Zerafa first, before trying to maneuver to bring a household name or champion to Australia, which unlike most of the boxing world, can hold live crowds like the raucous bunch at Newcastle Entertainment Centre.
“After the fight last night, why not bring them here? You can fight in a shoebox or fight in front of a roaring crowd like yesterday,” Tszyu said.
“Every fighter deserves to experience such an atmosphere and event, so why not bring it here?
“I think I was ready to go [overseas] a couple of fights ago, everything will fall into place, I’m in no rush.
“It’s just another step closer, every fight means more each time, the more risk, the bigger the event, more people watching, it’s another step closer to where I want to be.
“I know where I want to reach, and I know the potential I have to where I’m going to reach, so this is baby steps.
“I need to fight the global stars, top five, top 10 in the world.
“There’s going to be names mentioned now the world has got the attention, it’s just worldwide.”
Who’s next for champ Tszyu?
Hogan, in the end, got to wear those sponsored trunks of his to the ring.
It would be his only win, however.
On a night where lawyers were called to decide what Irishman Hogan would wear into his Steel City Showdown with Tszyu – ending a sponsorship debate that had raged for three days – the outcome proved far less contentious.
With a green towel, in the fifth, thrown out by Hogan’s corner to end it.
All of which takes us to the question that really matters: What next for the new face of Australian boxing?
While so much of the country would like to see Tszyu fight next for a super welterweight title, the reality is Zerafa is firming as his next rival.
Speaking shortly before the undefeated Tszyu would go out and claim his 18th straight win, manager Glen Jennings confirmed a world title opportunity may not be until 2022.
Currently, the division’s two champions are negotiating for a unifying title bout – American Jermell Charlo (WBC, WBA, IBF) and Argentine Brian Castano (WBO).
One option for Tszyu would be chasing the winner of a May bout between UK fighter Liam Smith and Russian Magomed Kurbanov, either in Australia or overseas.
Yet the best scenario for Tszyu, financially, would likely be to bring a ranked contender Down Under, or fight Zerafa in an all-Australian bout sure to earn plenty of interest.
Attracting a contender to Australia will be tough given the current two week mandatory COVID quarantining, however Team Tszyu have already looked at costings for private “A-Lister” accommodation.
“So we’ve got some options up our sleeve,” said Jennings, who also managed the career of Australian Hall of Famer Kostya Tszyu.
“We’re very conscious that a world title could be right around the corner or it could be next year.
“We don’t know. But we’ll be ready. And it doesn’t bother Tim. He will be patient.”
Jennings revealed, should quarantining continue, Team Tszyu had already looked into housing an overseas opponent privately, so he could continue training in lockdown.
“In terms of where we go after this, it will all depend on COVID, all depend on the politics of boxing, and of course who the champion is,” he said.
Asked if Team Tszyu could stump up for an international visitor, Jennings said: “One of our team members, that’s exactly what he does.
“He does the private quarantining for those A-listers you see in the paper.
“So there are options there but it all comes down to costs.
“Obviously it’s very expensive to quarantine someone in a private arrangement.
“But if someone says yes they’re keen, I’ve already got a ballpark figure.
“I can’t tell you what that is, it’s commercially sensitive, but we would have to do things right. Although quarantine only comes into play if someone wants to come here.
“But who knows, there could be someone here.”
Undoubtedly, topping that list is Zerafa.
Fresh off his KO win over Anthony Mundine, Zerafa told The Daily Telegraph earlier this week that his team were already in talks for a bout, most likely in Sydney, later this year.
While initially offered $70,000 to fight the son of Aussie boxing royalty, the fighter dubbed ‘Pretty Boy’ is now chasing $300,000, plus a cut of Pay-Per-View dollars.
Certainly you have to reckon he won’t be wearing a betting agency on his trunks.
Especially given, only hours before he was set to face Tszyu, Hogan and his team were still arguing over what shorts he would wear to the ring at Newcastle Entertainment Centre.
Put simply, Hogan wanted trunks that carried the name of his major sponsor, betting agency PointsBet, on the front.
Promoter Matt Rose, however, has Sportsbet as his event sponsor.
Which is why, even after the main event had started, and the need for promotion was done, Rose was still seen arguing with Hogan’s manager Danny Dimas.
Eventually, the issue was sorted, Hogan worse his shorts, and the fight went ahead.
Which quickly returned the night to normal programming – and a Tszyu win.
Originally published as Tszyu v Hogan: Hogan’s tongue almost cut in half by Tszyu blow
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