Tim Tszyu will challenge Erislandy Lara for the WBA middleweight title on home soil after No Limit Boxing confirmed the bout, with a late-November date expected and the city and venue still to be announced.
Promoters No Limit Boxing confirmed on Tuesday that the former WBO junior-middleweight champion will fight Lara for the WBA 160-pound crown in Australia. The Ring and Fox Sports reported the fight is expected in late November, with paperwork signed and several cities circling the show.
Tszyu, listed at 28-3 with 18 knockouts, called out Lara after his July unanimous-decision win over Errol Spence Jr at a sold-out Afterpay Arena. A second world title in a second division would put him alongside Jeff Fenech and Liam Paro among Australians to win world crowns at two weights — something his father Kostya, an undisputed light-welterweight champion, never did.
Tszyu: ‘legacy defining moment’
“I’ve carried the Tszyu name my whole life. It’s a privilege and it’s pressure,” Tszyu said in the No Limit release, as quoted by Nine and Fox Sports. “This is my chance to write a chapter that belongs to me, and it’s the legacy defining moment of my career.”
On Lara, Tszyu added: “Lara is a great champion. He’s slick, he’s clever and stylistically he’s very hard. He’ll want to turn this into a chess match but I’ve never taken the easy road. I want the man with the belt, and I’ll drag him into a fight he doesn’t want.”
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Lara the oldest reigning champ
Lara, 43, is boxing’s oldest reigning world champion. BoxingScene listed him at 32-3-3 with 19 knockouts. The Cuban southpaw has held world titles at super welterweight and middleweight and has never been stopped. His most recent outing was a December decision win over Johan Gonzalez, BoxingScene reported.
No Limit CEO George Rose said Tszyu asked for the fight by name. “I won’t sit here and tell you this will be easy. Lara is a nightmare for anyone,” Rose said, per Fox Sports and Nine. “He’s a genius in there and he’s spent a decade making the best in the world look silly. Plenty of big names have found reasons not to fight him. Tim wanted him and called for him by name. He wants legacy and the time is now.”
Gold Coast among cities chasing the bill
Fox Sports reported Gold Coast is understood to be a strong possibility to host, with Sydney, Brisbane and Perth also interested. An undercard has not been locked in; outlets have floated names including Nikita Tszyu, Liam Wilson, Liam Paro and, in US reporting, former undisputed champion Jermell Charlo, but none of those bouts were confirmed in the No Limit announcement.
Tszyu is trained by Fenech, who took over as head coach before the Spence win. “Having Jeff Fenech in my corner means everything,” Tszyu said. “He knows exactly what it takes to win titles at multiple weights, and he’s in my ear every single day. Liam Paro already did it this year, now it’s my turn.”
Further details on date, venue, tickets and broadcast are expected in the coming weeks.
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