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“I’m thirty-five and fresh. I would destroy myself at twenty-five. That is how confident I am right now.”–Kostya Tszyu.
The undisputed junior welterweight champion Kostya Tszyu, has nothing left to prove. His resume consists of a who’s who of boxing’s elite. He has beaten all of the junior welterweights considered at least be the heir to the throne. He knocked out the current undisputed welterweight champion Zab Judah in two rounds, back in 2001. He knocked out Sharmba Mitchell twice. Kostya’s second victory over Sharmba was even more impressive than the first one. Kostya had been out of the ring for almost two years, because of his torn rotator cuff. In what was the most dominant performance in the year 2004, Tzsyu annihilated Mitchell in three rounds. Oh, how can I forget, please excuse me as I take you on a trip to memory lane. He has a win over Roger Mayweather as well as over the Mexican living legend Julio Cesar Chavez. To say that Kostya Tszyu has had an illustrious career is an understatement. But, Tszyu says he still has something to prove to himself and his thirty-five-year-old body. “It’s all about challenges,” he says, as his career begins to wind down.
SaddoBoxing’s Edwin Gonzalez was on hand for Kostya Tszyu’s International conference call. Read on for the thoughts of the IBF junior welterweight champion before his much-anticipated showdown with England’s Ricky Hatton.
On June 4, the champion faces the undefeated Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton in his own backyard. The fight will take place in Manchester, England and is scheduled to begin at 2:00 in the morning local time live. The fight, televised on Showtime, should be very entertaining; Hatton chooses to assault his opponents with a non-stop body attack. Tszyu says that his age will not be a factor in his bout against the twenty-six-year-old. “I’ve gotten better with age,” the champion says. “Kostya Tszyu at thirty-five would destroy Kostya Tszyu at twenty-five.”
Hatton had alluded to the fact that he might have an advantage, because of Tszyu’s ring rust. On yesterday’s teleconference, the champion respectfully disagreed: “Inactivity is good for me. I’m thirty-five and fresh. I would destroy myself at twenty-five. That is his how confident I am right now.” He also made it clear that fighting in Hatton’s hometown has no effect on him whatsoever. He knows to expect a hostile crowd. “I can’t wait to step in the ring and show all my skills to the great fans in England,” he says. “I fought Julio Cesar Chavez in Arizona with an unbelievable atmosphere of 50,000 Mexicans cheering against me. I think I won a lot of fans in that fight even though I had to hurry from the ring that night because there were some very mad people.”
He also acknowledged the 2:00 a.m. local start time. Although this would be the first time that he would fight so late, it should not affect him. It is simply a mater of transition. Prior to this bout, his latest fighting time was midnight. “It doesn’t matter what time the fight starts. If you are 100% ready and a pure professional, it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter what time and in what place the fight takes place. I like challenges anyway.”
Prevailing wisdom expects that Hatton will attempt to swarm the champion and wear him down with his work rate. However, Tszyu says that Hatton’s style is good for the champion. “Every time somebody throws a punch, they leave themselves open. They leave themselves open for counters. For me, it is all about the split second. I don’t make mistakes and when others make mistakes, it is usually trouble for them. I am a lot happier when fighters come to me because there are more openings.”
Tszyu feels that Hatton’s style is tailor made for him. The total opposite of Sharmba Mitchell. “Sharmba is not easy to fight because he is a great tactician and hard to find. I think it is going to be a different story with Ricky in that I won’t need to look for Ricky because he will come to me.” But please do not be mistaken, at no point during the teleconference did Tszyu seem like he was underestimating his opponent. “He is the number one contender and presents a great challenge, physically and mentally,” he says. “I do love challenges for myself.”
Tszyu would not speculate on his future in the sport or possible opponents. Instead, he said that he takes it, “one fight at a time” and insists, “It’s all about the challenge and proving things to myself.” He also alluded to the fact that whatever the boxing public requests, he is more than willing to oblige. Meaning if the public wants to see him fight Vivian Harris, then he will fight Vivian Harris. If they do not, and they prefer to see him move up to 147-pounds and challenge Zab Judah for the undisputed crown, then he will.
He honestly feels that the fight is going to be entertaining, saying, “Of course it’s going to be a war.” Fight fans can assure themselves of that, because two high-quality fighters are set to collide head-to-head come next Saturday.
Edwin Gonzalez can be reached at prpapa427@aol.com
