Tim Tszyu weighed in at 153 lbs for his maiden title defense of his WBO junior middleweight belt during Friday’s weigh-in for his fight against challenger Brian Mendoza for tonight in Australia. Mendoza (22-2, 16 KOs) weighed in at 154 lbs for their fight on Showtime at the Gold Coast Convention Ctr, Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia.
It was a friendly weigh-in, with no shoving or mean-looking staredowns. Tszyu created it like was with an old friend, smiling a lot, not looking like he was trying to gain an edge through intimidation.
This is an important fight for Tszyu (23-0, 17 KOs) because A. He’s fighting in front of his fans for the last time because going to be campaigning in the U.S. after this. B. There are a lot of big-money matches available to him in the States if he’s victorious.
The undercard is a barebones type of affair, with mostly obscure Aussie fighters and no one recognizable to the average non-Australian fan. It’s just as well. The boxing world is only focused on the main event between Tszyu and Mendoza. So even if there was a great undercard, fans would be focusing on the main event.
Full weights:
Tim Tszyu 153 vs. Brian Mendoza 154
Sam Goodman 124.7 vs. Miguel Flores 124.8
Nathaniel May 129.8 vs. Jackson England 129.7
Shanell Dargan 121.1 vs. Amber Amelia 120.7
Julius Long 291.5 vs. Toese Vousiutu 247.3
Hassan Hamdan 141.9 vs. Danvers Cuschieri 142.3
Sergei Vorobev 153.7 vs. Wade Ryan 153.8
If Mendoza can pull off an upset on Saturday night, it would be brutal for the career of Tszyu because he’s got so many big fights available to him if he can get through this fight and have his hand raised.
Some of the options available for Tszyu:
- Jermell Charlo
- Terence Crawford
- Canelo Alvarez
- Errol Spence Jr
Tszyu has already said that he’d like to fight Crawford, Jermell, Canelo, and Spence. He’s open to any of those guys next.
“Nothing. Just that he sees it in my eyes. He said that ‘it’s going to be a great fight’ this and that, but honestly, I’m not even too focused on listening to what anybody’s saying at this point. I’m just locked in and ready to fight and get this victory,” said Brian Mendoza to the media on Friday when asked what Tim Tszyu said to him during the face-off at the weigh-in.
“Of course, it’s like looking into their soul. It’s the windows of the soul. So you can always see that, but no, I know he’s got a lot of fire in his heart, and I just feel like I have more, and I have the experience to fight at this level and just do what I have to do to get that win. But no, of course, psychology might start here, but at the end of the night, it’s just me and him in the ring.
“Eat, rest up, drink up and just rehydrate, just relax, and plan out everything, reiterate all the stuff we got to do tomorrow, and go be ready to get the job done. He does a lot of pressure. He has a little bit better of an IQ than people give him credit for, but I just feel like I bring things to the table he hasn’t seen before.
“I know he’s been in there with some tough guys and everything, but this is different. I’m not just tough I’m I’m a smart fighter in there. I love the crowd, even the support I got out here. I brought less than ten people with me, so I didn’t have a huge entourage or anything.
“We just came with a small circle to get the job done, get that victory, take that belt home, but I appreciate the love I’m getting out here. It’s incredible. I love the energy that Australia brings to these fights.
“Bigger fights. You guys see what I’m doing each time out; each fight I’ve taken is a harder fight than the last, so you’re going to see the same thing. I’m not out here asking for tune-ups, easy fights, hand-me fights, or anything like that. I just want bigger and better each time out. I’m chasing greatness.
“I start to feel it. That’s what you see me that way in face-off and everything. I do start to feel it. I’m dying to get in that ring already. I really doubt it. Not to take anything away from him, but in Vegas, it’s constantly champions, former world champions, undefeated prospects, Olympians, top-level amateurs, just everything.
“So I’ve seen everything at this point. I’ve spent five years of this thing. I spar year round, I train year-round, so the experience I’ve been able to gain in that time. People may only train for fights and stuff like that; I’ve gained a tremendous amount of experience, not even just from the sparing.
“Just from the people I have around me, like Yordenis Ugas and Erislandy Lara. I get to learn from them. Even with them giving me tips and advice and everything, I have endless knowledge around me.
“In different ways, yes, but he doesn’t have like a 10-inch reach on me and doesn’t have a foot taller than me. All this stuff, but he’s tough in his own way,” said Mendoza when asked if Tszyu is as difficult for him as his last opponent, Sebastian Fundora.
“That’s what we’re going to see, but the point is whether he’s tough, whatever it is, I get my hand raised at the end of the night. I really doubt it goes to distance, but I’m ready for it. The point is I’m going to win. I keep saying I’m getting my hand raised, so it’s by stoppage or by decision; it’s Brian Mendoza getting his hand raised at the end of the night.
“If you come to another man’s home country on literally the other side of the world and pull off a decision, I think there’s something to respect there. So I don’t care. I’m here to win ‘and the new’ at the end of the night,” said Mendoza.
