‘I’ll go back-to-back’: Tszyu reveals bold comeback plans with eyes on world title and an Aussie return
Tim Tszyu isn’t willing to wait around while he recovers from a facial cut that’s kept him out of the ring, instead he’s plotting his path back to the top, including a comeback fight in Australia.
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Tim Tszyu has revealed his bold comeback plan, with the Aussie wanting to fight twice - possibly in Australia - before the end of the year.
He then wants to take on the winner of the Sebastian Fundora-Errol Spence word title clash in his first fight of 2025.
‘The Soul Taker’ also hit back at suggestions he should make changes to his team following his bloody defeat to Fundora in March, and opened up on training with his dad, Kostya, in Thailand.
The 29-year-old was scheduled to make his comeback in August against Vergil Ortiz, but was pulled from the fight on medical advice after doctors ruled the cut on his forehead from the Fundora fight hadn’t healed correctly.
Tszyu is still unable to spar until he gets medical approval, but, speaking for the first time since the Ortiz fight was pulled, is adamant on getting two fights in before 2025.
“As soon as I get the green light, I’m ready to go,” he told this masthead. “I want two fights by the end of the year.
“I’ll go back-to-back. Straight away, no waiting.
“And hopefully I’ll be fighting for a world title – that’s what I want.”
Terence Crawford fights WBA super-welterweight champion Israil Madrimov in August, while WBC and WBO titleholder Fundora defends against Errol Spence in October.
That leaves Tszyu eyeing up IBF world champion Bakhram Murtazaliev, in a world title bout that could be held in Australia.
Murtazaliev says he won’t fight Down Under, but is open to defending against Tszyu in America.
Meanwhile, Tszyu’s promoters, No Limit, have started scouting venues in Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast ahead of Tszyu’s comeback.
“I want the belt. Simple. I want the bargaining power,” Tszyu said. “If that fight can happen, I’d love to fight him (Murtazaliev).
“Australia’s home, the support’s been amazing and if we can make the fight happen and not have to wait around, I’m going. I’m doing it.
“I think we create some sort of revenue here, so hopefully we can (bring Murtazaliev) to Australia.”
Other potential opponents include Erickson Lubin, longtime rival Jermell Charlo and Keith Thurman.
He then wants to fight once more in 2024 before facing the winner of the Fundora-Spence showdown.
“That’s what I ultimately want,” he said. “I’ll fight the winner and now it’ll be even bigger.
“I think Spence wins, but it depends which Spence shows up.
“So, I’m gonna go back-to-back and then fight one of them next year, because you know how those guys are, they only fight once or twice a year.”
Tszyu is philosophical about his split decision loss to Fundora.
After dominating the opening two rounds, the Aussie was cut on his forehead by Fundora’s elbow, and fought the next 10 rounds virtually blind in one eye.
“It was a cracker of a fight,” he said. “I haven’t re-watched it yet, but I didn’t feel like a loser.
“People lose fights, but I didn’t feel like I came out a loser. I didn’t win the fight, but I didn’t feel like I lost the fight.
“Honestly, in my head, after catching him a few times in the first two rounds, I felt the distance, I felt my sharpness and I could see his shots.
“I was blocking his shots and I was landing mine and I was thinking, ‘give me another four or five rounds’. The momentum was building.”
Which is why, despite the heavy criticism that was leveled at his team and the ringside doctor, he’s content that the fight wasn’t stopped due to the cut.
“If my corner had stopped the fight, I would’ve had the shits,” he said. “I knew what I was capable of doing, and I proved that in the first two rounds. I felt it.
“It was my emotions maybe getting the better of me and I was trying to land that big punch instead of staying focused.
“Because the first two rounds, when I was focused, I was picking him apart. I was landing clean shots, then that thing just rattled me.
“In boxing, you have to be focused 100% of the time, but my gameplan went through the roof due to the blood rushing all over my face.”
In the fallout of that loss, Tszyu spent a week in Thailand training with his dad.
It was the first time the world champion father-son pairing had spent that amount of time together training in more than a decade, but Tim said Kostya wasn’t joining the team full time.
“He’s a busy man,” he laughed. “But it just being able to see him and talk about everything in life and boxing.
“Him telling me stories about what he misses and stuff like that.
“Boxing’s been a big part of his life – he doesn’t miss the training though –that’s a fact.
“He says he trains every morning, but I think he only does a couple of push-ups and sit-ups. Come one, bro, that doesn’t count.
“He’s just old school. And I went full old school and I’m like that right now too. Still running, still training non-stop. Nothing stops.”
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