Kostya Tszyu: Business or Pleasure?

Kostya Tszyu travels to the United States often, but there are some things that being undisputed junior welterweight champion of the world cannot get you out of. Like that annoying customs line. Tszyu, however, is a patient man, as he’s had to be over the course of the last twenty-two months. So, when his time to step forward comes, he is polite and courteous

to a fault. “What is the purpose of your visit to the United States?” Kostya allows himself a small smile. “Business.” Taking care of business is exactly what Tszyu’s trips to America have been about in recent years. From Uncasville in Connecticut, the MGM Grand in Vegas or Phoenix, Arizona, Tszyu is unbeaten on American soil in over seven years. During this time, he’s accounted for Rafael Ruelas, Diobelys Hurtado, Miguel Angel Gonzalez, Sharmba Mitchell, Ahmed Santos, Julio Cesar Chavez, Oktay Urkal, Ben Tackie and Zab Judah. Among those names are the cream of the 140-pound division, and only one of those fights was close.

And so it is that Sharmba Mitchell gets his chance this Saturday night to go one better than his 2001 performance, which saw him quitting on his stool after seven rough, ragged rounds. He claimed that he was hampered by a pre-existing knee injury, but says he didn’t call the fight off beforehand because he “didn’t want to deal with all the controversy that that would cause.” Mitchell is a slick, talented southpaw who, for one reason or another, has never really consolidated his place at the top of boxing’s pound for pound charts. Despite defending his WBA belt several times before it was finally wrested from him by Tszyu, one has always sensed a certain fragility about Mitchell, a feeling
that when he is placed under extremes of physical and mental stress, he will fold. It’s a perception that Mitchell is desperate to erase.

“I’m taking it serious, because it’s a serious matter”, says Mitchell, thirty-four, “There is no way that he wants me as bad as I want him.”

In Mitchell’s favour is the inevitable ring rust Tszyu will feel. An Achilles tendon injury and a torn rotator cuff in his left shoulder have conspired to put his career on ice since January 2003, when he looked ordinary in accounting for a faded Jesse James Leija in Melbourne, Australia. By contrast, since his loss to Tszyu, Mitchell has reeled off eight consecutive victories; although it has to be said, those fights were not against opponents in Tszyu’s class. At thirty-four, he also seems to be slowing down slightly. If his performance against Lovemore N’dou is any indication, the hand and foot speed that highlighted his younger years are no longer what they were.

Former Tszyu sparring partner and a narrow points loser to Mitchell, N’dou is better placed than most to offer an insight. “Kostya is a very powerful puncher, and if he can land early, I think he wins it,” said N’dou, “but if Mitchell can take him in to the later rounds, who knows?”

Trainer Kevin Barry thinks that Tszyu’s age and recent injury history will prevent him repeating his 2001 success. ” Overcoming age and constant injuries make this task too hard at this stage of his career.”

Indeed, how badly Tszyu is affected by the lay off is, for many, the million dollar question in this fight. If his timing is off, even in the slightest, Mitchell’s slickness and ring generalship could give him fits. If, on the other hand, he attended the Felix Trinidad school of lay offs, Mitchell may be the one having problems. Kostya, meanwhile, knows that this fight is as important for his marketability as it is to Mitchell’s. A loss here would greatly set him back in his quest to land some big money showdowns, with the likes of Arturo Gatti and Ricky Hatton, before he retires.

Robbed of a potential mint back in 1997, when Vince Phillips’ upset win cost him a shot at moneyman Oscar De La Hoya, Tszyu will be out to secure future paydays for himself and his team, as well as prove to the boxing world what he believes – that he is the one and only champion at 140-pounds. On Saturday night, in his thirteenth fight since his stoppage loss to Phillips, we’ll find out if he’s right – we’ll see if he can take care of business one more time.

Greig Johnston can be reached at levibillups@yahoo.com