Another big fight that was postponed due to the coronavirus, Jeff Horn Vs. Tim Tszyu, is back on. The all-Australian grudge-fight is now scheduled to go down on August 26th in Townsville. Horn is of course the former WBO welterweight champion, the warrior who famously upset the great Manny Pacquiao to take the title. Tszyu is of course the son of the great Kostya Tszyu.
It’s big news in Australian boxing, with fans there buzzing over this fight for some time and the best news is the fact that fans, as many as 16,000 or more, are to be permitted to attend the fight.
“We’ve managed to boost the overall capacity to 32,000 with seats going on the ground,” Horns promoter Dean Lonergan told The New Daily. “With current Queensland restrictions allowing a maximum 25,000 people or up to 50 percent of the stadium, it’s allowed to put 16,000 people in there with COVID restrictions. Thanks to the great work of the Queensland government we are looking forward to one of the biggest fights in the world to take place.”
While “one of the biggest fights in the world” might be a bit of a stretch, there is no doubt this is a solid match-up, a fight that will be big stuff in Australia. Fans are perhaps more familiar with Horn; due to the Pacquiao fight and the later defeat Horn suffered at the hands of Terence Crawford. No doubt, Horn has far greater experience than Tszyu.
32 year old Horn is 20-2-1(13) overall and he has gone 2-1(1) since being stopped by Crawford in August of 2018. Horn scored an easy stoppage win over Anthony Mundine, before losing to Michael Zerafa in an upset. Back in December, Horn avenged the loss to Zerafa in a great action battle.
But while 25 year old Tsyzu, 15-0(11) might be lacking in overall experience, the unbeaten contender might prove to be too fast, too strong and too fresh for Horn. It really is a fascinating match-up and a case can be made for either man winning. Big things are expected of Tszyu, while Horn is determined to rule the world again.
The slight edge, at least here, goes to Horn. Maybe these two will wind up fighting each other more than just once.
