Former WBO world champ at 154 lb. Tim Tszyu is at a crucial time in his career. Can he regain his world title abilities? Well, after multiple losses in the U.S. he's gone back to Australia to find out starting Wednesday.
Former WBO junior middleweight titleholder Tim Tszyu of Australia, who was highly regarded as the world’s best fighter at 154 pounds just a couple of years ago, now finds himself at a crossroads and has returned to his home country to try to get back on track Wednesday night.
Tszyu, the son of hall of famer Kostya Tszyu, has stumbled into a stretch of three losses in his last four fights with two of those defeats coming by stoppage in punishing fashion. The most jarring setback came in October 2024, when he suffered a brutal third-round knockout loss in Orlando, FL, to IBF champion Bakhram Murtazaliev. In that bout, Tszyu was dropped four times, overwhelmed by an opponent few believed posed a serious threat.
Earlier this year, Tszyu endured another brutal defeat in his rematch against WBC junior middleweight champ Sebastian Fundora in Las Vegas. Dropped in the opening round, cut badly over his right eye and steadily battered, Tszyu eventually retired on his stool after seven rounds in the co-feature fight of the Manny Pacquiao–Mario Barrios PPV in July. Fundora had beaten Tszyu by split decision in their first fight, where the Australian suffered a gruesome head gash on his hairline from an accidental elbow and proceed to bleed badly the final 10 rounds of the bout.
Now, at 31 years old Tszyu (25-3, 18 KOs) has suffered all three of his professional losses in the United States, where his ambition to dominate the division has collided with harsh reality. This week, he returns to his more familiar surroundings, fighting in his hometown of Sydney, Australia, headlining at the ICC Sydney Theatre early Wednesday morning U.S. Time. He will face Anthony Velazquez in a scheduled 10-round middleweight bout headlining a "No Limit Boxing" card.
For Tszyu, the bout represents more than just another fight. He enters with the comforts of home, a new trainer in his corner and against an opponent he is expected to beat. Whether this marks the beginning of a revival or merely a pause in a troubling decline remains to be seen.
In the build up to his non-title fight at 160 lb. Tszyu said,
“It was good to come home and see my family, see my dog, but this isn’t a holiday,” Tszyu said. “It’s the same mission I left Australia with. Seeing him (Velazquez at a face off) for the first time didn’t mean much — I just can’t wait to get in there and punch his face. That’s honestly what was going through my head.”
Tszyu also will step into the fight with new trainer Pedro Diaz, who he trained with in Florida, after splitting from career-long trainer Igor Goloubev, who is Tszyu's uncle.
“This is a new chapter for me,” Tszyu said. “I’m grateful for my old team and the run we had, but I’m just as grateful for this new beginning. I’ve gone through this camp with a new team, a new process and a different mindset, and I’m doing this for myself. That’s why I call it the Phoenix.
“Working with Pedro has been refreshing. His energy, his knowledge, the way he genuinely cares about his fighter. It feels like family. As for the noise and the headlines, that’s for you (media) guys. I’ve stayed away from it all. I’m focused, calm and ready.”
Tszyu had won 24 straight fights, mainly in the "Land Down Under," including three straight WBO title bouts by KO before the first loss to Fundora.
Can he get some swagger back against the little known Velazquez (18-0-1, 15 KOs) of Springfield, Massachusetts? We're about to find out.