Tim Tszyu v Keith Thurman: Inside Aussie boxing world champion’s Las Vegas training camp
Tim Tszyu is in the midst of a gruelling training camp ahead of the biggest fight of his life. But, what is really happening over there in Vegas? BRENDAN BRADFORD takes you behind the scenes.
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He’s a boxing world champion, one of Australia’s most well-known sportspeople and is currently training for the biggest fight of his life, but on this particular Sunday, Tim Tszyu is in deep trouble back home – for a few minutes at least.
As he sits down for lunch at a restaurant in Casesars Palace in Las Vegas, the WBO super-welterweight world champion gets a call from his partner, Alex.
She’s not happy.
Moments earlier, Tszyu had sent her a photo of the pair of shoes he’s just bought himself.
A self-confessed sneaker-head, Tszyu reckons he’s got way more shoes than Alex, but he’s had his eye on this particular pair for a while.
So, on an afternoon off from the gruelling two-a-day training sessions he’s putting himself through in preparation for his Las Vegas debut against Keith Thurman on March 30, he treats himself at one of Caesars Palace’s many shopping hotspots.
Somewhere along the line though, there’s a breakdown in communication.
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“I sent her a picture of the sneakers and she was like, ‘Oh my God, you did not get them?!’ and she called me straight away,” he laughs.
“Man, she thought they cost over 10 grand!
“She was a bit easier when she realised they were under 10. Under 10 is alright, but more than that and you’re starting to get a bit ridiculous.”
It’s telling that a $10,000 pair of shoes isn’t outside the realms of possibility though.
Tszyu is truly big-time now, coming a long way from the 24-year-old who posted a selfie outside the ICC Theatre in Sydney ahead of his second pay-per-view headliner against Dwight Ritchie 2019.
Now, his name and face are plastered on the gargantuan advertising screens on the side of the T-Mobile Arena in Vegas.
“Who would’ve thought that at any given time in my life that I could be thinking about spending 10 grand on shoes,” he says. “It’s crazy.
“I can go out and spend 10 thousand dollars on shoes, but I choose not to. I value money quite a bit.
“Sneakers, OK, I’ll go out and spend a couple of K, but nothing crazy.
“And afterwards, just don’t look at the bank account, and you’re alright. It makes you feel a bit better.”
It doesn’t feel like too long ago that he was swiping his card and simply hoping for the best though.
“Don’t worry I used to feel that all the time – getting nervous about ‘Approved’ or ‘Declined’,” he laughs.
“It’s a bit better now.”
The Tszyu crew – which consists of Tim, his uncle and trainer Igor and full time chef, Omar – spend a few hours window shopping at some of Vegas’ high end fashion stores.
It’s a much needed respite from the monotonous grind of training camp.
Most days, he boxes in the morning, runs around the Vegas suburbs in the afternoon, then takes cold plunges in the freezing pool at the house they’ve rented for their nine-week camp.
At Moncler, Omar buys a pair of nice white sunnies to celebrate his 40th birthday. He doesn’t want to put them on right away, but Tim encourages him to show them off.
“You have to have enjoy it, have a bit of laughter, a bit of banter and just muck around,” Tim says.
“It was good to see Omar finally buy his first pair of big boy stuff. His store is usually Zara, but every time we’re here in Vegas, all we do is walk around those high-end fashion brands, so he always gets a sneak peek.
“We go down there maybe once a week, just walk around and relax. It’s just something to do.”
Tszyu is anonymous today, but it might not stay that way for much longer. Not if his grand plans of fighting the likes of Jermell Charlo, Terence Crawford and Errol Spence come to fruition.
Boxing is only mentioned a couple of times the whole afternoon.
While trying on sunglasses at Versace, it’s jokingly suggested that Tim might look good in a pair of women’s sunnies with big black wings coming off the frames.
“I think that’s more Charlo’s style,” he quips.
Later, he briefly considers buying a cap with “Mexico” emblazoned on the front after Thurman’s bizarre “Mexican Tszyu, whatcha gonna do” rant earlier in the month.
After lunch – which for Tszyu consists of a healthy burger, steamed veggies and an espresso – boxing’s smallest entourage climbs into their hired black Porsche and drives to Speed Vegas for a Go-Karting session.
Their new purchases sit in the boot, where a basketball rolls around and bounces off a Pickleball set as Igor drives past Allegiant Stadium, where the NRL will launch its 2024 season.
Tim prepares to take a photo of the NRL advert that periodically pops up on the 80,000 seat venue’s massive screen, but it’s all ads for Sports Water, the Las Vegas Raiders and a Morgan Wallen concert.
Nevertheless, Tszyu is looking forward to attending the NRL’s US debut in a few weeks.
Talk turns to Alex Volkanovski’s loss to Ilia Topuria at UFC 298 the night before. Volk and Tszyu are good mates, but the Aussie was impressed with Topuria’s boxing skills.
The trio have a more pressing issue at hand though.
From the front seat, Tim turns around to Omar in the back.
“You nervous?” he asks.
The chef replies, “Yeah, I’ve got butterflies.”
The loser of their three-way Go-Kart race will be forced to do 1000 push-ups in 24 hours, and Omar’s already worried about copping the punishment.
Often the first to crack jokes, Tim has been relaxed all afternoon, but as they squeeze into their racing helmets, a steely glare comes over his face.
The competitive fire is back, even for this friendly eight-minute race between mates.
Tim, who loves the adrenaline of driving fast, takes the corners at speed, occasionally slides perilously close to the wall, and soon laps everyone else.
Meanwhile, Omar drifts towards the back of the pack.
Sweaty and buzzing afterwards, they pull off their helmets, relive the race and analyse their fastest lap times.
“You’re competitive,” Omar jokes with Tim. “Whenever Igor passes me he says, ‘Hey let’s go! And waves’ but when you go past me, it’s all focus.”
Which is how, 20 minutes later, Omar is in a planking position in the carpark, wearing his brand new Moncler sunnies, finishing his first set of push-ups.
Tim films the effort under the warm Vegas sun.
“Just 975 to go, right?” Omar asks, slightly out of breath.
Then they pile back into the Porsche and drive the 25 minutes back to their training camp. Back to two-a-day sessions, road runs, intricately prepared meals and cold plunges.
“At the end of the day, me, Igor and Omar are like family – literally,” Tim says as the sun starts setting. “We spend more time with each other than we do with our partners.
“That’s just the family connection we have.”
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Originally published as Tim Tszyu v Keith Thurman: Inside Aussie boxing world champion’s Las Vegas training camp
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