Michael Zerafa says he won’t retire and calls out Tim Tszyu after ending bitter feud

They have been bitter rivals for three years. But after flying the flag for Australian boxing in Las Vegas, Michael Zerafa wants to fight Tim Tszyu for the right reasons.

Tim Tszyu and Michael Zerafa’s last fight was cancelled three years ago. Picture: Peter Lorimer/Getty Images

World-title challenger Michael Zerafa says he has buried the hatchet with Tim Tszyu and called for the beaten duo to finally settle their score by staging an Australian super fight.

Melbourne middleweight Zerafa insists he won’t retire in the wake of his world-title nightmare in Las Vegas last Sunday, when he suffered a brutal second-round TKO loss to defending champion Erislandy Lara at T-Mobile Arena.

Bitter rivals for the past three years, Zerafa and Tszyu were unwittingly brought together, flying the flag for Australian boxing during a history-making weekend in Las Vegas.

It turned out to be a Sin City shocker for both men.

Tszyu and Zerafa’s domestic blockbuster was cancelled in fight week three years ago.

Tszyu suffered a nasty head cut in his split-decision world-title loss to Sebastian Fundora in the main event, while Zerafa was bludgeoned by Lara in their battle for the WBA middleweight strap.

With Tszyu now empty-handed, Zerafa believes the time is right to re-open negotiations — three years after ‘Pretty Boy’ pulled out on the eve of their domestic blockbuster in July 2021 citing border-travel issues during the Covid crisis.

The fierce foes have traded vicious barbs ever since, but Zerafa says the once-warring duo smoked the peace pipe in Vegas.

“I would love to fight Tim Tszyu next, 100 per cent,” said Zerafa, who returned to hometown Melbourne on Friday morning.

“Look, we made amends in Vegas so I’m not going to bag Tim.

“He showed me respect, I showed him respect and both our teams showed respect.

“I wanted Tim to win and we spoke after the fight.

Zerafa fought on the undercard of the Tim Tszyu-Sebastian Fundora bloodbath.

“Both our teams got along great, so moving forward there will be a good alliance and genuine respect between the two camps.

“In saying that, it doesn’t mean the rivalry between us as boxers is no longer there.

“I still want the fight against Tim, but I’m not going to trash talk him.

“It will be strictly business as professionals and I still genuinely believe it’s the fight that has to happen for Australian boxing.”

Zerafa has previously challenged Tszyu to step up to middleweight, but after losing to Lara, the 32-year-old is considering going down to meet the son of Kostya in the 154-pound division.

“There’s talk about me coming down to 154 (super welterweight) because at 160 I’m probably too small as a middleweight,” Zerafa said.

“I would love to fight Tim for a potential world-title eliminator.

“Outside the ring, it’s genuine respect, but in terms of business, we are two of the best fighters in Australia and it’s a great fight to make.

“We are both coming off losses so the timing is right.

“He always had that world title over me, but we both now have nothing, so it makes sense for us to fight.”

On holiday in Hawaii, Tim Tszyu is already getting himself ready for his next fight.

The Lara loss represented Zerafa’s fifth defeat from 36 career fights.

The Nevada Athletic Commission has suspended Zerafa from fighting until May 30, but the former WBA No.1 mandatory insists he won’t be hanging up the gloves.

“It’s not the end for me, I’m not retiring,” he said.

“The good news is PBC (promoters Premier Boxing Champions) have told me they will honour my deal. I have another fight with them and they are keen to put me on another show in America.

“I dared to be great, but Lara is a great fighter, he set me up perfectly, and I just didn’t see his shot coming.

“It’s a good wake-up call. It’s made me hungrier.

“It’s a bit of a setback, no doubt, but it’s my first loss in five years, so I’m not going to retire because of one defeat.”

Originally published as Michael Zerafa says he won’t retire and calls out Tim Tszyu after ending bitter feud