‘Hold your horses’: Tszyu to wait for world-title shot
Darren Walton |
Sporting immortality awaits but Nikita Tszyu is patiently playing the long game in pursuit of a special place in boxing’s history books.
Tszyu’s Hall of Fame dad Kostya and older brother Tim are already in elite company among only a handful of father-son duos to have won world titles.
Now the youngest Tszyu sibling has edged ever closer to his own world-title shot with a dominant victory over tough Spaniard Oscar Diaz in Newcastle.
The 28-year-old is tipped to climb to third in the IBF rankings following Wednesday night’s brutal sixth-round stoppage of the previously undefeated European.
Tszyu, though, is refusing to buy into talk he could fight for a world championship as early as this year.
“No, relax,” he told reporters in the aftermath of his 10th TKO from 12 professional bouts.
“I’m still 12 fights in. Like world titles are not even the conversation yet.
“Yes, there’s a ranking, but there’s still so much missing in experience.
“So just hold the horses, guys. We’ll get there eventually. There’s a lot to improve on.”
Tim Tszyu comprehensively beat American Tony Harrison to claim the WBO super-welterweight time in his 22nd professional bout.
Harrison’s name has been floated as a next possible opponent for Nikita, but No Limit Boxing boss George Rose is also happy to allow Tszyu to carefully bide his time.
“Look, he’s so raw still and we often forget that it’s only a few years back (when) the bloke was an architect,” Rose said.
“He wasn’t even boxing. He wasn’t even training and he’s jumped straight into a pro career. He’s faced all these undefeated opponents.
“There is still so much more growth for him, and he’s just knocked off a world-rated opponent in what I think was the most complete performance that I’ve seen from Nikita Tszyu.”
Tszyu, though, is so highly ranked now and with his family name also appealing for opponents, the Sydney slayer could be called out for a world-title showdown.
Rose knows that, too.
“But he’s so raw in his professional career,” he said.
“There’s been a lot of inactivity for him in the last few years where I know he wants to be more active and wants to get more fights – and I agree.”
Tszyu also has to carefully manage his surgically repaired left hand, which he was icing at Wednesday night’s post-fight press conference.
“It’s not broken,” he said.
“It’s just a little bit inflamed. I knew it was going to happen. As I was warming my hand up, I could feel that.
“At that point, I was just like, ‘Whatever, if it hurts, it hurts. Got to punch through the breaks, punch through the pain.
“It’s probably something I’m going to be dealing with for my whole career. We’re going to have a little ice pack with me after a fight, but it’s part of the business.”
AAP