Australian star Tim Tszyu is looking to replicate what his famous father, Kostya Tszyu, pulled off 21-years-ago.
Kostya Tszyu, who was deemed as the big underdog, became the undisputed champion at junior welterweight when he stopped 3-1 favorite Zab Judah in two rounds at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
On Wednesday, the World Boxing Organization ordered their world champion, Jermell Charlo, to make a mandatory defense against Tim Tszyu. Charlo is one of the few undisputed champions in boxing, with the WBO, IBF, WBA, WBC junior middleweight titles around his waist.
Despite being a superstar in his country, Tszyu would love to face Charlo in big Las Vegas headliner.
Last month in California, Tszyu sat ringside to watch Charlo (35-1-1, 19 KOs) score a knockout of Brian Castano (17-1-12 KOs) in their anticipated rematch.
Afterwards, Charlo firmly told reporters that he was far from impressed by Tszyu and views him as an easy opponent.
The unbeaten Aussie fighter disagrees.
“This is my Zab Judah moment. This is the moment that every kid dreams of, and the best thing about it is he reckons it’s going to be a walk in the park. But I guarantee it’s no walk in the park for him,” Tszyu told Fox Sports.
“Look, the boys are the top level, it’s no walk in the park. But at the same time I do believe in my ability. Castano’s only a small man, so I’m not going to judge that performance. But I give credit to Charlo, he’s good. He’s not bad. He’s in the top 10 pound for pound, he’s at his peak, 30 years old, he’s on a high, he’s got all the belts, and that’s the best thing about it, if you take on someone like that, at their peak, in the pound for pound list, and take it all away from them, it’s even sweeter.
“It’s (winning) easier said than done, but I’ll prove it. I know myself that I can do it, the boys know I can do it, and for the first time I won’t be the favorite, which is good, and if people want to win some money, here you go.”