‘I want it’: Tim Tszyu’s bold Jermell Charlo call out after injury chaos
Aussie boxing star Tim Tszyu is more than ready for his US debut and is ready to fight anyone — even a unified world champion.
Boxing/MMA
Don't miss out on the headlines from Boxing/MMA. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Tim Tszyu has come up with a bold solution after his US debut was thrown into doubt by a shock withdrawal.
The Aussie star is 20-0 in his career so far but a unification bout between Brian Castano and Jermell Charlo has stood in his way, forcing the Aussie to bide his time.
Watch Boxing Live & On-Demand on Kayo. Selected international fights, classic bouts and more. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Having fought exclusively in Australia so far, mainly due to the difficulty in travel during the Covid-19 pandemic, Tszyu was set to strut his stuff in the US for the first time on the undercard of the second clash between Castano and Charlo after a split decision draw last time around in July.
But a bicep injury during sparring saw Castano unable to fight on March 19 and the fight likely to be pushed until April.
However, instead of sitting on his hands and waiting, Tszyu has offered to step in to fight Charlo for his WBC, WBA and IBF titles.
“I don’t care who is in front of me in the ring, if Charlo is available I want it, I have been in training camp for seven weeks and I’m ready,” Tszyu told The Daily Telegraph.
“If Castano is injured, I can step up and fight Charlo and Castano can fight the winner.”
Tszyu was mandated to fight Castano for the WBO title but it has been put on hold due to the unification bout as the 27-year-old waits for his shot at being a world champion.
It would be an intriguing prospect if Charlo took Tszyu up on the offer as the pair shared words last year as the American took aim at the Aussie.
“First off, Tim ‘Kostya’ Tszyu is not on a level to even fight for a world title,” Charlo said, during a fan Q&A on his personal YouTube channel.
“He ain’t even on the level to fight some of the guys that I’ve knocked the f**k out of and he ain’t even going to get no chance to fight me, probably throughout my career. I’m just being honest with you.”
Tszyu replied that he’d give Charlo no other choice but to fight him.
On Friday, Tszyu’s manager Glenn Jennings wrote on the Team Tszyu 2 Facebook page that the Aussie was ready and raring to go.
“So you’ve all heard the news that Brian Castano has withdrawn from the rematch with Charlo with a bicep injury, The big question that everyone is asking is where does that leave our planned co main event card for Tim,” the message began.
“We don’t have all the info to be able to make an informed decision, but together with out promoters we are working through the options and doing whatever is necessary whist waiting for the outcome.
“Boxing is a tricky business at best, so these things happen, injuries occur beyond our control and so you have to remain flexible and positive and work hard to ensure the best outcome for your fighter, team and fans.
“We have said all along we won’t sit and wait, we will stay busy, the titles will come in due course and so we will work our way through this and keep you all posted.
“We have put it out there if Castano is out, we will happily step in and take Charlo.
“Stranger things have happened. Tim and our team are ready to go regardless of who stands in front of him in the ring in March.”
Tszyu, who defeated Takeshi Inoue by unanimous decision last November, is the mandatory challenger to the WBO belt held by Castano.
Speaking after his dominant victory in Sydney last year, Tszyu issued the boxing world a message.
“Finish your honeymoons, get in the gym, start training, because I’m coming for all of you, every single one of you,” he said in front of more than 10,000 people at Qudos Bank Arena.
“I would like to take (his title) in the US and then bring it back to Australia, do it the right way,” Tszyu added.
“It has always been a dream of mine, since I was a young kid, to fight over there.”
Originally published as ‘I want it’: Tim Tszyu’s bold Jermell Charlo call out after injury chaos
Aussie boxer receives huge legal win on the eve of world title fight
Jai Opetaia has already secured a knockout win two days out from his IBF cruiserweight world title defence in Saudi Arabia, with a monster $1.6 million court case victory against a former promoter.
Tszyu avoids disaster despite once-in-a-lifetime freak hurricane
Despite Orlando being hit by one of the worst hurricanes in American history, Tim Tszyu and his camp have avoided the financial disaster of moving his title fight to Las Vegas.