Analyst Shawn Porter believes that Tim Tszyu (24-2, 17 KOs) went into his fight with IBF junior middleweight champion Bakhram Murtazliev (23-0, 17 KOs) with an “arrogant” mindset, which led to his early exit and defeat. third round on Saturday night at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida.
Porter had picked former WBO junior middleweight champion Tszyu to win the fight, but his prediction was completely wrong. Tszyu should have punched and moved around the ring rather than mixing it up with the big puncher Murtazliev. However, Porter admits that Tszyu has yet to reach this level in his eight-year professional career as a boxer.
Tszyu has always been a one-dimensional fighter, depending 100% on his strength and the ability to trap his prey. Last night, he met a fighter with more power, size, and skill than him in a third-round TKO loss to Murtazaliev on Premier Boxing Champions on Amazon Prime Video. Tszyu was exposed. That’s basically what happened.
Could Tszyu Succeed If He Boxed?
- Changing Styles: It would have been difficult for him to switch to plan B when things went downhill in the second round. Against Murtazaliev, Tszyu would not be able to escape his pressure even if he moved and punched the way Porter felt he should. Tszyu had to work on the transition to boxing, and it is doubtful that he did.
- Power Gain: Tszyu’s choice of moves and movements would not help him take the heavy punches that Murtazaliev would hit him with. Those guns were brutal, and he showed the power to knock with both hands. Going into the fight, he focused on Murtzaliev’s right hand, but his left hand did a lot of damage last night. Tszyu couldn’t take the left hooks, which seemed to be as powerful as the rights he was hitting him with.
- Using the Jab: If Tszyu had used his jab, it is doubtful that he would have been successful in keeping Murtazaliev from using this tool because he was the jab alone and had the reach advantage. He caught Tszyu with a jab, cracked his head, and tagged him with left hooks.
“They should not have tried to fight fire with fire. That’s his style. I get that, but I feel like moving and turning was the right thing to do. He put that into training,” said Shawn Porter on FOX Sports Australia, discussing the outcome of Tim Tszyu’s TKO loss to Bakhram Murtaliev last Saturday night. “As for returning to the world championship, I’m not sure. Once you’re at the top, it’s only a matter of time before you go back.”
Porter feels Tszyu can get back on top with one win against a top fighter, but he’s not saying who that guy might be. At this point, it would be a big challenge for Tszyu to beat one of these killers at 154:
– Serhii Bohachuk
– Israel Madrimov
– Vergil Ortiz Jr.
– Terence Crawford
Those warriors have skill and strength and can exploit the same mistakes Tszyu Murtazaliev exposed last Saturday night. Tszyu’s promoters would be crazy to try to match him with any of these guys, even if he appeals to them.
Tim Must Go Home Level
Tszyu will most likely return home to Australia for his next fight and be compared to his home level fighter Michael Zerafa to rebuild his shattered confidence. That’s still not a gimme for Tszyu because Zerafa can hit, and if there’s leftovers from his Murtazaliev loss there, he’ll use that.
Tszyu will have to take an ego hit returning to fight at the Aussie level, but has now failed in his bid to fight at the world level. It would be pointless for him to continue to fight against top-level opposition and end up on the tour circuit within two or three years of repeated losses.
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