The voice of boxing
Legendary ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jnr is in town to introduce Tim Tszyu and Carlos Ocampo as they make their ring entrances.
Lennon reckons Tszyu is well and truly on the radar of American fight fans after his demolition of previous opponent Tony Harrison. It’s why Lennon is keen to see how he fares against Ocampo.
“It’s a good fight,” Lennon said. “Ocampo is a tough opponent. He’s a big man, he’s tall, he’s got good range and body shots.
“It’s a tough time for Tim and I hope he is ready for it. I believe he is.”
Tim Tszyu is making his mark on the boxing world.Credit: No Limit Boxing
So how would Tszyu fare against Charlo if he gets past Ocampo unscathed?
“Needless to say, it’s the toughest fight of his career,” Lennon said.
“Charlo is coming off a long delay, Tim being very active is a good thing. He just needs to do what he needs to do. Charlo is a tough fighter in every way, it’s a tough fight to call.
“He has all the tools to win, it’s a good opportunity for him. There is a good chance that he could win.”
Not too far away
It’s been a packed fight card, but most of the fights haven’t gone the distance. There is only one more fight, between Australian Sam Goodman and American Ra’eese Aleem 55.18kg.
It’s a huge moment in the career of the undefeated local; it’s an IBF super-bantamweight world title eliminator.
Australian boxer Sam Goodmam is on the cusp of a world title fight.Credit: SMH
Goodman is here with his very vocal support crew, The Mad Bunch. Great atmosphere in here.
And then things got worse
Just when you thought Tim Tszyu’s preparation couldn’t get any worse, thieves tried to break into his house and car.
It begs the question: what sort of an imbecile would try to steal from Tszyu?
One can only imagine the flogging the burglar would have received if Tszyu had caught him touching his beloved Mercedes.
Dog-gone days
Is this the fight that should never have gone ahead?
Just a couple of weeks ago, Tim Tszyu attended a BBQ at a mate’s place when disaster struck. An American staffordshire terrier mauled Tszyu’s arm, causing an injury that required surgery and 26 stitches. Try to keep your lunch down while you check out these pics.
It was the perfect excuse to call off the Ocampo fight, particularly after the WBO mandated Jermell Charlo to face the Australian later this year.
However, Tszyu isn’t the retiring type and insisted the fight go ahead. As for his arm being targeted during the contest, the “Soul Taker” was dismissive.
This is not your usual sporting injury.
“What’s there to target, there’s nothing to target,” Tszyu said. “He would be stupid if he tries that.”
Who is Carlos Ocampo?
The bookmakers have installed him as a 10-1 outsider, but Carlos Ocampo is no mug. Ocampo has won 35 of his 37 fights (23 by knockout) and his only losses have been to stars of the welterweight division, Sebastian Fundora and Errol Spence Junior.
It was noticeable during the face-off with Tszyu that Ocampo will have a significant height and reach advantage.
The outsider, who doesn’t speak English, said he wasn’t perturbed by the Tszyu family’s unbeaten record against Mexicans.
Carlos Ocampo, right, wants to pull off a monumental upset.Credit: No Limit
“It doesn’t matter. I’m not one of those fighters who got beaten by Tim’s father,” Ocampo said.
“I’m Carlos Ocampo and I’m going to show the difference between them and us. It’s going to be a real war but it’s not going to last very long and it’s going to be [a] win by knockout.”
Mexican stand-off
This isn’t the first time the Tszyu family has tangled with a Mexican.
Kostya Tszyu, during his illustrious hall-of-fame career, took on and beat all five of his Mexican opponents. One of them was the legendary Julio César Chávez, arguably the greatest fighter the country has ever produced. However, when I spoke to Kostya recently, he labelled his TKO win over Miguel Angel Gonzalez a year earlier as his finest moment.
“I think against Gonzalez, that was my best performance,” Kostya said. “Step by step, destroyed the legend. Didn’t give him one chance. I would say to myself, that is 10 from 10.”
Tim Tszyu (right) gets some tips off the old man.Credit: Renee Nowytarger
The pressure is now on Tim Tszyu to extend his family’s record to 6-0 against Mexicans.
Good afternoon fight fans!
A very warm welcome to you from a sold-out Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre, which will play host to Tim Tszyu’s clash fight against Mexican Carlos Ocampo. This will be Tszyu’s first defence of his WBO super-welterweight interim world title belt, but there is much more on the line.
If the Australian wins, he gets a guaranteed crack at Jermell Charlo, the undisputed champion who holds all four major belts. A loss, however, scuppers that dream bout and sets a promising career back irrevocably.
Tim Tszyu and Carlos Ocampo face off during the official weigh-in on the Gold Coast on Saturday.Credit: Getty
It’s a huge risk, one that many believe Tszyu shouldn’t be taking.
Is it madness?
Sit back, relax and find out as we bring you all the action from ringside.
