Tim Tszyu’s next bout in USA with former unified welterweight world champion (WBA & WBC), Keith Thurman was scheduled as a non-title bout. However the WBO, who is the sanctioning body of the Light Middleweight title held by Tszyu, has mandated that this fight now be a title fight with that belt on the line!
The body is hinting that the winner of this bout and therefore the holder of the WBO Light Middleweight title, will go on to challenge Terence Crawford (WBO, WBA and WBC Welterweight champion) for unification of the division.
Why has this happened and is it good or bad for Tszyu?
Without being in the boardroom at WBO, we don’t really know the strategy written on the white board or presented in a PowerPoint presentation. However, knowing that the sanctioning bodies are all essentially `Sales Organizations’ (ie they benefit from ticket sales for PPV and seats at events), then we know that at least the decision driver is to make a bigger fight with the path to Terence. In so doing, the WBO also creates a champion that helps to further its cause and keep it relevant in the Boxing community.
Crawford is currently ranked, pound for pound, the best active boxer in the world having held titles simultaneously across multiple divisions. In fact, in August ’17, Crawford was the undisputed light welterweight champion, being the first since Tim’s dad, Kostya Tszyu in ’04. He was also the first in any weight class to simultaneously hold all four world titles since Jermain Taylor in ’05. And in July ’23, he became the first male two-division undisputed champion of the four-belt era after defeating Errol Spence Jr in brutally spectacular fashion! So a fight with Crawford is one of the biggest money events in the boxing world today (probably Fury vs Usyk being the only one bigger)!
Is this good for Tszyu?
This change mandated by WBO shouldn’t worry Tszyu at all! He’s in USA at the moment climatizing and preparing for March 30th. Tszyu is already focused and confident of a win against Thurman, and raising the stakes makes absolutely NO difference to a confident boxer whose mindset is already set to WIN.
The issue with Tszyu is that the big names don’t want to fight him! And that’s not because he isn’t inspiring to them, but more because he is HIGH RISK for SMALL REWARD. What that means, is that Tszyu has a strong undefeated record, and video footage shows the consistency of his style, but he is not drawing the big money from global promoters and organizations! Even holding the World Light Welterweight title hasn’t been able to bring in the big names, because the purse is too low to justify the risk of losing to him. So, a win against Thurman to retain the title places Tszyu in direct line to defend against the world’s pound for pound best active boxer, plus gain the unification! A further win there puts Tszyu at the top of the division and blocking the path of any other boxer whose ambition is this title. So in future, they’ll have to fight him because they’ll have to take him out of the way.
Could this be bad for Tszyu?
Potentially. A loss to Thurman now, puts Thurman back on the path he was at a few years ago, and in direct line to fight Crawford for his collection of belts! Thurman is currently a bigger name than Tszyu given his past championship holdings. A bout between Thurman and Crawford may yield more ticket sales. But if that were the WBO’s plan, then Tszyu is in the way and needs to be moved out! Remember that Tszyu inherited rather than won the title as the previous holder, Jermell Charlo vacated the belt to chase Canelo Alvarez at a higher division.
I have no doubt that Tszyu will defeat Thurman on March 30th. However, that assumes all goes well, that the judges all see the same thing at the same time and of course, dare I say, that there are no ulterior motives or unscrupulous judges. If the bout goes to judges’ decision, there is always a risk that the judges will score in the wrong favor and there is rarely if ever, any ramification of a bad decision. It happens all the time.
How can Tszyu ensure that the decision is fair and goes his way?
Unlike other sports like soccer, cricket or rugby where a score is clear and seen by all, the fight game is one where we rely on judges to count how many punches landed and to assess how many points were earned. The ONLY way to avoid a bad decision by the judges, and the only way to demonstrate a win without any dispute whatsoever, is a clear KNOCK-OUT (KO)! Tszyu needs to knockout Thurman, and it needs to be done decisively and without hesitation. That means an early or mid-round knockout. Round 5 – 6 is good! Whether Tszyu has the power to knockout Thurman remains to be seen, although his signature `Body Blow + Overhand Right’, has potential to do the job! Either way, Tszyu can certainly create such a mess on an opponent’s face or cause such pain in that opponent’s body that the referee will have to end the fight, which is a Technical Knock Out (TKO). That will suffice also and send Tszyu directly to the biggest fight of his career, both in terms of financial reward as well as stature and career path.
Thurman’s team are probably advising him the same way. So at the end of the day, time will tell, and March 30th (March 31st in Australia), will be the day we’ll know.
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