Australian boxing star Tim Tszyu has suffered a shock defeat in his heavily-hyped IBF super welterweight title in Florida, demolished inside three rounds by undefeated Russian Bakhram Murtazaliev.
Tszyu appeared to suffer a cut to the scalp midway through the first round as Murtazaliev’s right jab caused early damage. Things got worse for the Australian in the second round as the taller Russian used his height advantage to rip combinations into Tszyu’s body.
When Murtazaliev knocked Tszyu down three times inside the second round alone, the fight was as good as over. Tszyu emerged for the third but was groggy and stumbling all over the ring, his hands low and his defence almost non-existent.
When the referee refused to stop the fight, the official doctor intervened. The ring medic allowed Tszyu to fight on but the Australian was sent to the canvas a fourth time. He rose on jelly legs but was soon on the ropes again. On the verge of a fifth knock down, Tszyu’s corner finally threw in the towel.
“Every time I step into the ring, I’m willing to die in here,” a shattered Tszyu said after the defeat. “No excuses. Boxing is not meant to be perfect, but you live and you learn. After the first shot, things didn’t go according to plan.”
Tszyu had been bidding to join his Hall of Famer father Kostya as only the second father-son to win two world titles. Multiple world title winner Kostya, 55, had flown into Florida from his home in Moscow and was watching ringside for the first time since 2016 after almost a decade estranged from his sons.
Tim had reunited with his father in Thailand this May. For Tim’s 26-year-old younger brother, Nikita – also a rising star of the ring with an unbeaten 10-0 record in the light-middleweight division – it had been 11 years since he’d seen his famous father.
But this reunion took a bitter and unexpected twist with 29-year-old Tim suffering a second straight defeat after opening his career with 23 consecutive wins.
Following the victory, Murtazaliev salted the Tszyu family’s wound. Hoisted onto the shoulders of his team, the Russian was heard bellowing: “Who’s your Daddy now?”
Sydney-raised Tszyu had been looking to bounce back from a bloody loss to Sebastian Fundora in March where a huge gash to his forehead blighted his vision and, despite gamely seeing out the bout, falling to the first defeat of his career.
He had been scheduled to fight Vergil Ortiz Jr in August but the fight was cancelled on medical advice, with Tszyu needing more time for the cut on his head to heal. Now his reputation – and future as global drawcard - has taken a heavy beating.
