Keith Thurman brutally stops Brock Jarvis, calls out Tim Tszyu for blockbuster fight
Keith Thurman made light work of brave Aussie Brock Jarvis, knocking him down twice in the third on the way to a brutal TKO win. And he’s set his sights on Tim Tszyu.
Keith Thurman made light work of brave Aussie Brock Jarvis, knocking him down twice in the third on the way to a brutal TKO win.
The former two-time world champion proved class is permanent despite three years out of the ring.
Jarvis was game and landed several big shots in his eight minutes in the ring, but there was a massive gulf in class between the pair as Thurman’s precision was too much for Jarvis’ raw athleticism.
“I knew that’s what Brock was all about. From the face-off, he was still holding onto some animosity,” Thurman said.
“After I saw that anger in him, let that boy use it up in the first round.
“A small left hook to the body, I saw him wince, I put the pressure on. He showed some grit, then my signature uppercut got him down.”
The sequence that got the job done for Keith Thurman 💣#nolimitboxing#nolimitppv#thurmanjarvispic.twitter.com/F4B42dtCrS
— No Limit Boxing (@NoLimit_Boxing) March 12, 2025
Thurman dedicated the win to his daughter who turned two on Monday and immediately doubled down on his call out of Tim Tszyu, who was watching from the broadcast booth.
“I just raised the bar on you, Tszyu,” Thurman said. “Three years of inactivity. You wanna come back, come back hard, baby.
“Represent Australia. We’ve got another American fighter coming for you.
“I’m looking forward to fighting anybody, but if the contract materialises, you know what Keith Thurman do. I’ll sign the contract, baby.”
Tszyu was shown on the broadcast holding his finger to his mouth telling him to be quiet.
“I’ve got business to do on April 6, but I’m pretty psyched,” said Tszyu, who fights Joey Spencer next month.
“He comes in swinging, and when you have a pure boxer, you can exploit that.
“But, easier said than done. He’s a talent, and what he did tonight, it’s one hell of a performance.”
Jarvis had a disrupted fight camp after his high profile split with Jeff Fenech. For the first time in his career, the Marrickville Mauler wasn’t in his corner, but was sitting ringside with wife, Suzee.
Fenech became emotional and left the arena seconds after Jarvis walked to the ring. He returned before the fight started, but walked through the barricades and watched the third round TKO loss at a ringside seat.
Thurman rattled Jarvis with a one-two after just one minute of the opening round, but was caught himself jumping in too eagerly.
Jarvis went to work on the inside in his best Fenech imitation, but Thurman fought back by the end of the frame.
Two outrageously big right hands stopped Jarvis’ attacks in its tracks in the third round, and Jarvis crumpled to the mat after a hook to the body and vicious left uppercut.
The brave Sydneysider only barely beat the count, but was on unsteady legs and shouldn’t have been allowed to continue.
Thurman wasted no time ending it, sending Jarvis to the canvas a second time with a left hook.
Zerafa injures hand in KO win
Michael Zerafa walked out to boos, but left the ring to cheers after a seventh round stoppage of Besir Ay in the co-main event.
One of Australian boxing’s biggest villains over the past five years, Zerafa won over the Hordern Pavilion crowd in a back and forth battle with the dangerous Ay.
Zerafa had Ay hurt in the sixth, before dropping him twice in the seventh, and forcing referee Chris Condon to stop the bout before the German could take any more punishment.
“I always play the villain and you guys boo me, but sometimes I just need to focus,” he said. “I think I broke my hand on his head in round two.
“I felt it go in round two, then I started head-hunting. I was a little bit flat, but we got the wind.
“Whether you love me or hate me, I want to thank you, because you make boxing great. We need villains sometimes, and I’m happy to play that role.
“This sport’s hard as hell.
“Everyone that’s in here, whether you love me or hate me, thank you. This is what the sport needs.
“The main question is Tim Tszyu – I’ve got nothing against Tim, and as an Aussie I’m getting behind him,” he said. “I hope he beats Spencer. When we fight, we’ll punch each other’s heads in.
“He’s an athlete, I’m an athlete, and that’s the biggest fight in Australia.”
Tapia claims wild war
Mateo Tapia won a wild war against Sergei Vorobiev, knocking the Sydney-based Russian out in the fourth round of their all-action middleweight scrap.
Two pinpoint right hands on Vorobiev’s chin rattled the Russian in the closing seconds of the third, stopping his relentless attack.
It was an even bigger overhand right on the tip of Vorobiev’s chin that ended the fight in the next round.
Vorobiev regained his feet, but was on unsteady legs and referee Les Fear called it off.
The finishing punch was so violent that the sold out Hordern Pavilion groaned each time the replay was shown on the big screen.
Vorobiev was furious at the stoppage, protesting for minutes afterwards as the Florida-based Tapia celebrated.
A new star emerges
Kirra Ruston showed why he’s the hottest rising prospect in Australian boxing, jabbing Tonga Tongotongo’s left eye mercilessly for six rounds before the fight was stopped.
Ruston stunned Tongotongo with a massive straight right with 15 seconds remaining in the sixth round, before landing a barrage of big shots as the Kiwi slumped against a ropes.
Tongotongo beat the count and saw the bell for the end of the round, but his corner stopped it before the start of the seventh.
Brisbane-based Ruston is a star in the making and takes home the Australian light heavyweight title, having fought just 11 days ago.
Ruston displayed all his fearsome attacking prowess, but weathered a storm as well, in the first of his five pro fights that has gone beyond two rounds.
Fawcett calls out Jarvis
Central Coast slugger Jason Fawcett stopped dangerous Japanese fighter Kohei Hakatana and immediately called out Brock Jarvis.
“If the money’s there, I’ll take Brock Jarvis and put him in retirement,” Fawcett told this masthead. “Definitely.
“We’ll see how he goes tonight.
“A couple of the boys in our gym fought him in the amateurs in the junior days.
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“I reckon I’ll end his career. Jokes. It’ll be a good fight, but I’ll get it over him.”
Earlier, Linn Sandstrom scored a 10-round unanimous decision victory over Yoselin Fernandez and Jason Clenshaw continued his rise up the welterweight ranks.
The card opened with an upset, with Angel Rushton – daughter of Jeff Horn’s trainer, Glenn Rushton – dropping a unanimous decision in an untelevised bout against Nadia Flalhi.
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