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FIGHT WEEK
Tim Tszyu, recently upgraded to the full WBO 154-pound championship, will make his first defense against Brian Mendoza in Australia.
TIM TSZYU (23-0, 17 KOs) VS.
BRIAN MENDOZA (22-2, 16 KOs)
- Date: Saturday, Oct. 14 (Oct. 15 in Australia)
- Time: 10:30 p.m. ET / 7:30 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
- Where: Gold Coast Convention Centre, Broadbeach, Australia
- TV/Stream: Showtime
- Division: Junior middleweight (154 pounds)
- At stake: Tszyu’s WBO title
- Odds: Tszyu 5-1 favorite (average of multiple outlets)
- Pound-for-pound: None
- Also on the card: Sam Goodman vs. Miguel Flores, junior featherweights; Nathaniel May vs. Jackson Jon England, junior lightweights; Sergei Vorobev vs. Wade Ryan, junior middleweights
- Prediction: Tszyu KO 10
- Background: Tszyu was supposed to have challenged then-undisputed 154-pound champion Jermell Charlo but ended up being upgraded from the WBO “interim” to full titleholder when Charlo fought Canelo Alvarez instead. The 28-year-old from Sydney has turned in a series of quality performances, including a decision over Terrell Gausha and knockouts of Tony Harrison and Carlos Ocampo in his last three fights. The son of Hall of Famer Kostya Tszyu wasn’t gratified when he was upgraded, saying he wanted to win the title in the ring. He sees this fight more as a battle for the vacant title than a defense. Mendoza is one of the hotter boxers in the world. The 29-year-old from Albuquerque delivered back-to-back knockouts of former beltholder Jeison Rosario in November and top contender Sebastian Fundora in April. He has won three in a row since losing to Jesus Ramos in 2021.
ALSO FIGHTING THIS WEEK
WEDNESDAY
- Femke Hermans vs. Mary Spencer, rematch, junior middleweights (for vacant IBF title), Montreal (ESPN+)
SATURDAY
- KSI vs. Tommy Fury, cruiserweights, Manchester, England (pay-per-view)
- Vincenzo Gualtieri vs. Janibek Alimkhanuly, middleweights (for Gualtieri’s IBF and Alimkhanuly’s WBO titles), Rosenberg, Texas (ESPN, ESPN+)
