What to Know
- Former world champions Errol Spence Jr. and Tim Tszyu face each other in a must-win fight on Saturday, July 25, from Afterpay Arena in Sydney, Australia.
- Spence vs Tszyu airs as a pay-per-view event on Prime Video, DAZN Live, and PPV.com in U.S. primetime starting at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.
- The undercard features former world champion Stephen Fulton Jr. against former title challenger Liam Wilson of Australia at super featherweight.
People love a good mystery. Our brains are wired by evolution to gather information, make observations, and work out theories to find the truth, which gives us that sense of satisfaction and accomplishment.
The upcoming Spence vs Tszyu fight on Saturday, July 25 from Sydney, Australia gives boxing fans this narrative, and how fitting that one of the two men who will enter the ring is nicknamed “The Truth.”
Welcome Back, Errol Spence Jr.
Former unified three-belt world champion Errol “The Truth” Spence Jr. returns to the ring after a three-year absence almost to the day in a showdown with popular former 154-pound world champion Tim Tszyu in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions PPV available on Prime Video, DAZN LIVE, and PPV.com in U.S. primetime from Afterpay Arena. The action begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.
Spence Jr. of DeSoto, Texas (28-1, 22 KOs) appeared to be done with boxing after a thorough drubbing by Terence Crawford in 2023. He retreated to his ranch and enjoyed his family, out of the limelight and mostly off social media.
Tim Tszyu Counting on Home Cooking
During this same time, Tszyu of Sydney (27-3, 18 KOs) took himself on a roller coaster ride, building on a promising string of victories to take on world champions including Sebastian Fundora and Bakhram Murtazaliev only to suffer losses based in part on reckless decisions in and out of the ring.
Now the two men face each other with their futures in their hands. Both will try to awaken the skills and drive that both made them fan favorites and continue their personal revivals. But one of them will find himself once again at the bottom of a deep hole with a decision to make about whether it’s not worth digging himself out.
While we won’t know until Saturday, observers and fans are on the hunt for clues.
Why Is Spence Jr. Back in Boxing?
Spence Jr.’s comeback in this high-stakes bout against Tszyu on the Australian’s home turf is driven first by the oldest motivation there is: not ending his career with a loss.
Spence Jr. was unwilling to let a particularly devastating loss against Crawford be the he final chapter of his professional career.
“He just didn’t want to go out the way he went out,” said Spence Jr.’s new trainer, the veteran Ronnie Shields. “This is for him. He’s satisfying himself.”
Spence Jr. took his time making the decision with his extended layoff, a layoff he says he needed to thoroughly heal from the fight with Crawford, from two significant auto accidents, eye surgery, and grueling fight camps back to back to back. Spence Jr. says the time with his family was like medicine.
“I needed that time off to let everything heal,” said Spence Jr. “I wouldn’t have come back if I wasn’t feeling great.”
But rather than take a tune-up bout which no one would have begrudged him, Spence Jr. instead made the call to test himself and answer any doubts about his current status. He believes his skills and his drive are still sharp.
Spence Jr. is moving up from welterweight to super welterweight, though he raised concerns about his condition by negotiating an additional two-pound margin catchweight just prior to this week’s fight.
Spence Jr.’s team claims if he cannot perform at his previous skill level, this will be his final fight win or lose. But if he wins in an ugly or less than impressive manner, who are we kidding?
Why Is Tim Tszyu Pressing On in Boxing?
Tszyu continues to press forward after some serious ring setbacks, believing his struggle to once again reach boxing’s highest plane is achievable.
After an unfortunate loss in a fight he took on short notice against Sebastian Fundora, a fight marred by a horrific cut and a bad decision by his corner to let him continue under adverse circumstances, followed by a shocking knockout loss to Bakhram Murtazaliev, Tszyu refused to believe the two fights defined his career.
He revamped his training, changing trainers along the way as many boxers do after losses, and insisted on pursuing a comeback. Tszyu decided that if his fate was going to change, he needed to impose those changes.
“I do believe in myself,” said Tszyu. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t take this fight if I thought I was going to lose.”
Tszyu must also navigate the psychological baggage that comes with endless comparisons to his father, beloved former champion and Hall of Famer Kostya Tszyu. Their familial relationship hasn’t always been a smooth one.
Tszyu is determined to build his own distinct legacy in boxing history. He wants to earn respect from his actions and not his famous name.
Like Spence Jr., Tszyu is fighting at a higher weight, although he is not making as big a transition. “Life is good. I’m very grateful to be on this stage,” said Tszyu. “What I’ve done in the moment, how bad I want it, and my supreme ability right now, I’ll get the job done.”
It’s A Cliffhanger Until Fight Night
Both Spence Jr. and Tszyu pass the eye test (a figurative one in Spence Jr.’s case) in video posted of training camp. Both are saying all the right things in interviews and public appearances this week leading to Saturday’s showdown.
Spence Jr. says he expects a tough, grueling fight with Tszyu, saying it reminds him of traveling to England to face Kell Brook, where he won the IBF World Welterweight title.
“People can think what they want to think about the weight, but on fight night they’re gonna see something different,” vowed Spence Jr. “The mentality doesn’t change at all. It’s me versus him, and it’s everything on the line.
“The hunger is still there, and I’m still here to show everyone that Errol Spence is still here,” promising fans they would get their money’s worth. Asked if he feels pressure, Spence Jr. pushed the idea aside.
“Pressure’s something you create in your mind, it’s a mentality. I don’t have any pressure on me. Pressure is people in Haiti eating mudpies to survive. That’s a lot of pressure. Pressure is people not having food to eat, that’s pressure. There ain’t no pressure. I’ve made millions of dollars to fight another man. Where’s pressure in that?” asked Spence Jr.
“When you make $20 million in one fight, of course your perspective is going to change. You go to the gym to feel good, not to be a warrior,” said Tszyu of Spence Jr.’s remarks.
“Instead of a tactical fight, I want this to be a fight that makes him ask himself, ‘How bad do you really want this?’ When you’ve made all that money and had some time off, what’s your real motivation? Do you really want to keep going when it gets hard? For me, I’m all in,” said Tszyu.
Tszyu brushed off criticism of his recent performances against current and former world champions. “Why would I go into a fight I think I’m going to lose? It doesn’t work like that. We’re all warriors with something in here that makes us tick. I’m here to put the full stop to his career.”
How Does Spence vs Tszyu Play Out?
Tim Tszyu is the ultimate bull-in-the-china-shop fighter. He presses forward even when he shouldn’t. He believes every problem in the ring can be solved by doubling down on his output.
Tszyu claims he’ll have a different look in the ring this time, now training with Australian boxing legend and International Hall of Famer Jeff Fenech. Tszyu appointed Fenech as his head coach in April after parting ways with Miami-based Cuban trainer Pedro Diaz. Fenech has vowed he will correct Tszyu’s defensive deficiencies. Good luck with that.
But if there was ever the right fight to test this, it’s against Spence Jr. It’s impossible to unsee how badly Spence Jr. was worked over by Bud Crawford. Tszyu is no Crawford, but Spence Jr. has been out of the ring three years. He’s three years older, he’s heavier, and he is going to be slower.
Spence Jr. namechecks his championship win against Kell Brook. But it was Brook’s first fight after having his orbital bone smashed in by Gennadiy Golovkin.
Time is no boxer’s friend. At age 36, Spence Jr. is the product of 14 years of accumulated wear and tear in the ring, while suffering serious injuries outside the ring that could easily have ended his career, plus three years off.
Feeling good while resuming training and saying it was “intuition” that told him to come back for this fight, while being quoted this week as saying he isn’t sure whether this is his last fight, isn’t a recipe for success.
Prediction for Spence vs Tszyu
There are fights individuals never come back from. What remains of Earl Spence Jr. after the Terence Crawford fight?
Not having a tune-up fight benefits Spence Jr. because he offers no clues where he really stands today. With a tune-up, we would have a clearer picture.
I’m not going with the oddsmakers on this one who have given the edge to Spence Jr. Tszyu has been active, has the home field advantage, and will get an edge on the scorecards should the fight go to the final bell. I believe it will. Tszyu has only scored one knockout in the last three years against Carlos Ocampo in 2023. Expect Tszyu by unanimous decision.
The action will also feature former 122- and 126-pound world champion Stephen Fulton Jr. facing Australian former title challenger Liam Wilson in a 12-round WBA Super Featherweight Title Eliminator serving as the co-main event.
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist with more than four dozen awards for both written and video coverage from the Boxing Writers Association of America, Society of Professional Journalists, and San Diego Press Club, where she is the past president. She is the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the BWAA. She is the Boxing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.
