Via Jim Calfa: 1 WBO junior middleweight contender Tim Tszyu (20-0, 15 KOs) weighed 153.4 pounds on Friday in his main event equalizer against Terrell Gausha in Showtime Boxing at Armory, Minneapolis. Gausha weighs 153.2 lbs.
(Image source: Esther Lin / SHOWTIME)
Tszyu, 27, just needs to win this bout on Saturday so he can fight for the WBO belt against the winner of a rematch between WBO 154lb champion Brian Castano and IBF/WBA/WBC champion Jermell Charlo on May 14.
Tszyu is the favorite to make it to the 12th round of Saturday’s tournament against 34-year-old Gausha (22-2-1, 11 KOs), but he could be in for a big surprise.
Gausha was a better fighter than the opponent Tszyu fought. Tim has power, but so do many of the fighters Gausha has defeated in the past.
If Gausha can deal with a small upset Saturday night before Tszyum, he will be the one to challenge winner Charlo vs. Castano II. That would be very impressive.
Other weights on cards Tszyu vs. Gausha:
Michel Rivera 136.5 vs Jospeh Adorno 136.75
Elvis Rodriguez 141.25 vs Juan Velasco 141.5
“He has never fought a boxer like me before. He’s definitely never fought a boxer like me before,” Terrell Gausha told Podcasts PBC when talking about Tim Tszyu.
“It’s definitely a different style and a different look. Every war is different. Of course, Tim Tszyu is another boxer. I couldn’t do the same things I did with the other boxers, so I had to come up with another game.
“As fighters we have to always be relevant and the way we do that is to put on outstanding performances so that the fans want to see endings like that, so that’s what I’m trying to do. try,” Gausha said in her thoughts. second round knockout win over Jamontay Clark last year in March 2021.
“At this point in my career, I feel like I’m still improving. It’s weird since most people are down, but I feel like I’m learning and getting better and I’m ready.
“I think he brings excitement, I think he brings his fanbase and his style,” Gausha said when asked what Tszyu will bring to this match. “I like it, but I feel there are many levels to this.
“We have to go there on Saturday to see what he really has. I’m the type of guy I’ve always liked. I don’t really care about that, to be honest. I just love fighting,” Gausha said when asked about his thoughts on being the underdog to Tszyu.
“The lower league team, the fans, all that is not important to me. But it wasn’t my first experience being the underdog, you know. I am the weaker one. Even in my last fight [against Jamontay Clark], they consider me a little weaker. Let’s see what happened after that. So it doesn’t really matter.
“That’s where I have my spirit and where I’m at in my career,” Gausha said of the fight with Tszyu coming at a good time in his career. “Now I have more advantages.
“I imagine what the war is like [with Tszyu] going on in my head, but that’s why we have to fight. I feel like I’m winning. Every war is a must-win. Any fight can set you back.
“I don’t put that kind of pressure on myself, but I just go out and do what I do. We know the importance of this fight, and we know the chance I have to fight for the belt. That’s what I wanted,” Gausha said.
It’s no big deal that Gausha is the underdog in this fight as he is facing a famous boxer in Tszyu. However, Gausha still has a chance to win if he avoids one of Tszyu’s big hits.
