Hurricane blows in late for his date with Tim Tszyu

Dennis ‘Hurricane’ Hogan claimed Covid screening at the airport made him late for his date with Tim Tszyu. It seemed more like a snub.

Tim Tszyu fights Brisbane-based Irishman Dennis Hogan in Newcastle on Wednesday night. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

Dennis “The Hurricane” Hogan arrived like a late afternoon breeze. He was nearly an hour late for a shopping centre appearance with Tim Tszyu ahead of their Steel City Showdown. The cut-price beds outside Myer looked good for a snooze. It seemed a blatant and disrespectful snub of his foe until a legitimate excuse was presented for his tardiness — only for the confrontational Irishman to admit it was a bit of a snub after all.

Described by Tszyu as a fly to be swatted away at Newcastle Entertainment Centre on Wednesday night, Hogan’s flight from Brisbane arrived on schedule in Newcastle at 11.10am on Sunday. He was scheduled to go straight to Charlestown Shopping Square to dance around a makeshift ring and meet a few locals from noon.

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COVID-19 procedures kept him at the airport longer than anticipated. By the time he skipped in at 12.50pm, not a care in the world, the area was virtually empty. The DJ was packing up, the hundreds-strong crowd had finished watching Tszyu, they’d pulled the plug on the music and Hogan was left to shadow box in a very literal sense. He was basically on his own.

“COVID screening,” he explained. “It just took us ages to get through the airport.”

He denied it was a snub then said: “You know, I know he’s going to try to do that to me in the ring walk, so I’m glad it happened. I’ll be standing there holding the rope for him, waiting for him. I can’t wait to punch on. Let’s do it. It’s funny, I was very relaxed the whole time (during the airport delay). I’ll take that one as a little win for today.”

Tszyu played his part, wearing a Newcastle Knights cap during a brisk enough session while hundreds of Novocastrians looked on. He plonked himself behind a table to sign autographs, kiss babies, pose for photographs.

“I didn’t even notice,” Tszyu said of Hogan’s absence before making his prediction for fight night. “I’ll be ready for everything. He’s like a fly. Always flying around, buzzing. But once in a while you’ve got to smack that fly. That’s the game. He’s going to bring a tough fight.

“We’re going to expect a tough Dennis Hogan … this fight has to be flawless. Every fight from now on has the be flawless. There’s no such thing as bad opponents on this level. I’ve just got to get rid of them. He’ll come out blazing. Plenty of punches, plenty of activity. He’ll be moving around, dancing around. I’ll wait for him to stop then I’ll punch his head in.”

Asked if was going to stick around for Hogan to arrive at Charlestown Square, Tszyu said: “What, to watch him? I’ve got a few other things to do.”

Dennis Hogan is ready to fight Tim Tszyu. Picture: Annette Dew

Hogan hasn’t fought for more than a year and Tszyu said he would pounce on the “ring rust” in the 36-year-old. Eyeing off a world title fight later in the year, Tszyu said of the bout against Hogan: “This is cleaning out Australia. This guy’s a world title challenger. He’s up there on the world rankings, he’s fought the very best, this is a challenge. I’m hoping it is.

“I want to be put in a position where it’s hard. I want to make hard look easy. It’s like the (Jeff) Horn fight. Everyone was saying this and that. This is the same situation. I’ll make hard look easy.”

The Brisbane-based Irishman went within a whisker, and controversial judging decision, of the WBO world super welterweight title in 2019. “This is the best you’ve ever seen me,” he said. “It mystifies me why I’m the underdog. I understand it in a sense — he’s got those Manny Pacquiao points by way of Jeff (Horn) … I’m glad he’s had the career that he has. I’m glad everyone is doing well. Unfortunately for him, I’m going to have to come and take him.

“It’s been 14 or 15 months since I fought. Right now I don’t care what words Timmy is reading off the teleprompter, I can’t wait to get in and just do what I do.”

If you beat the biggest name in Australian boxing, you become the biggest name in Australian boxing. Yet Hogan, in his thick Irish accent, doubts that will apply to him. “I don’t know if I’d be welcomed as that,” he said. “What will happen is, ‘Timmy was overrated anyway.’ Let’s see who the Tszyu supporters are after this fight. Challenge accepted. Bring it on. He’s started to talk a bigger game than I believe he deserves to be able to talk. I’m the man right now to put him back in his box.”