Tim Tszyu weighed in at 153.4 lbs and IBF junior middleweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev came in at 152.8 pounds during the official weigh-in for their fight this Saturday, October 19th at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida. The ceremonial weigh-in will be later.
Nervous Tszyu
Tszyu (24-1, 17 KOs) has seemed nervous all week during interviews. While he’s talked in his normal bold manner, his face and body language don’t match his words. He clearly knows that the unbeaten Murtazaliev (22-0, 16 KOs) is a threat to him and his career.
Tszyu could lose and get knocked out by the big, powerful seek and destroy Murtazaliev. The timing for Tsyu to take on the murderous puncher Murtazaliev, who fans feel is a blend of these fighters: Artur Beterbiev, Gennady Golovkin, and Sergey Kovalev.
If Tszyu can’t keep Murtazaliev off of him on Saturday, he’s not going to last long because this guy is lethal with his power and combination punching. There’s a reason why he’s been avoided by the top fighters in the 154-lb division and paid step-aside money.
Weights:
Bakhram Murtazaliev 152.8
Tim Tszyu 153.4
“I just said he’s not as tall and as strong as I thought he was,” said Tim Tszyu to the media when asked what he said to Bakhram Murtazaliev during their final press conference on Thursday. “He doesn’t look that big.”
It sounds like Tszyu is trying to boost his own self-confidence by saying that Murtazaliev didn’t “Look that big.” When the two fighters stood face-to-face, Murtazaliev looked taller and more powerful of the two. Tszyu is trying to project a false image of fearlessness, designed to disguise the fear that he has for his opponent, Murtazaliev. Tszyu is clearly afraid.
You can see it in his face and the way he acts. He knows Murtazaliev can wreck his career by knocking him out on Saturday and permanently ruining his dreams of getting the big money fights against Crawford, Fundora, and Spence.
“This is the fight to prove it as well. I can really show off what I’m made of,” said Tszyu when asked if his fight with Murtazaliev will prove that he deserves to fight Sebastian Fundora, Terence Crawford, and Errol Spence.
If Tszyu loses to Murtazaliev, his hopes to become a two-time 154-lb champion will be temporarily derailed, and it would be a second consecutive defeat for the 29-year-old. Moreover, Tszyu’s popularity will be further degraded because he will have failed once again, but this time against a fighter that casual boxing fans aren’t familiar with. Murtazaliev isn’t well known to Australians and U.S. fans.
Tszyu Can’t Afford Another Loss
A loss against Murtazaliev will make it difficult for Tszyu to get the fights that he wants against Crawford, Spence, and Fundora. Tszyu would need to work his way back to the top by beating highly ranked contenders at 154, and it’s questionable whether he could do that in time to get fights against the aging Spence and Crawford.
“I feel like it’s a little similar to Ocampo. He’s a little more grit, more skillful,” said Tszyu about Murtazaliev. “I’ll see on the night. I really adapt and adjust. People really underestimate my boxing skills. They really think I just walk forward. No, no, there’s a lot more to that.”
This sounds like mind games by Tszyu, comparing Murtazaliev to his past opponent, Carlos Ocampo, who he knocked out in the first round last year on June 18, 2023. Murtazaliev fights nothing like Ocampo, who had been knocked out in the first round by Spence in 2018 and beaten by Fundora in 2022.
“Zero,” said Tszyu when asked if he feels that he and Murtazaliev have a somewhat similar fighting style.
“I’m not doing that. It’s stupid,” said Tszyu when asked if he’d been running to take off weight for the weigh-in because Murtazaliev had been seen doing that. “He was also eating chips the other night. It doesn’t make any sense at all. No, I don’t think he’s struggling [to make weight]. I think he’s stupid.”
This comment from Tszyu is another example of him trying to get a mental advantage over Murtazaliev, hoping that he heard what he said so that he would not be confident on fight night. It’s not going to work. Murtazaliev will be confident and looking to knock out Tszyu and potentially finish off his sinking career.
