A funny thing happened on the way to international stardom for Tim Tszyu. This year. And to be more specific, this past weekend at the Caribe Royal in Orlando, Florida, where he was drilled in three by Bakhram Murtazaliev in stunning fashion.
Coming into 2024, he was the WBO junior middleweight belt-holder, and to many pundits number one in the division. Not only that, he was generating significant buzz after his 2023 campaign that included decisive wins over Tony Harrison, Carlos O'Campo and Brian Mendoza.
He was honing his skills and steadily improving as a prizefighter. Tszyu was all set to make his return to America to further build his profile.
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It was at this time last year (October 15, 2023) that he pounded home a solid 12 round victory over Mendoza in Australia. This was a tough battle where Tszyu separated himself in the late rounds. It seemed that the 29 year old was ready to face anyone in the world.
But as they say, life comes at you fast.
Murtazaliev vs Tszyu HIGHLIGHTS: October 19, 2024 | PBC on Prime Video
In late March he agreed to face the tall and angular, Sebastian Fundora on late notice. It was an admirable move on his part. It was refreshing to see a modern day boxer take on a boxer of his nature under these difficult circumstances. Early on Tszyu suffered a freak cut on the middle of his forehead, and what unfolded was a bloody battle that saw Fundora come away with a hard fought 12 round decision at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
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But in defeat, Tszyu put forth an admirable effort and with all the dynamics that were in play for this contest, his stock didn't drop all that much. But while he did lose his WBO strap, Tszyu was still very much in play for some of the bigger bouts in the division given his popularity and his fan-friendly style. A late summer bout with Vergil Ortiz was scuttled to give him more time to heal his wounds from the Fundora battle. Eventually he was paired with Murtazaliev.
This was a classic case of a belt mattering. The reality is that Murtazaliev wasn't just a relatively unknown boxers, but flat out anonymous to most casual fans. For years he was the mandatory challenger but as that division was in a continual SIG Alert with the inactivity of Jermell Charlo (who was the undisputed champion for a good stretch), he was stuck taking step-aside fees and undercard bouts.
Finally, he got his shot at the vacant IBF title this past April against Jack Culcay, where he scored an 11th round TKO. With this strap around his waist, Murtazaliev suddenly gained value at 154. As other bouts involving the champions in this division were being brandied about involving the likes of Terence Crawford and Fundora, Tszyu and his team figured that by getting this belt, they would be right back in the mix with some added value.
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Tszyu came into this bout as the favorite. Nobody told Murtazaliev, unfortunately for him. In round two, he struck Tszyu with a left hook that ended up sending Tszyu to the canvas. This was no flash knockdown, and as Tszyu kept trying to fight back, he was sent down two more times in the round.
What Vince Phillips right hand was for his father, Kostya, Murtazaliev's left hook was for the son.
"We just worked on these combinations all the time and when the fight came, it was automatic,” said Murtazaliev. “We worked for 10 weeks on those punches that hurt him. We created opportunities and we believed that we could win this fight.”
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The next round saw Murtazaliev stun Tszyu again with another knockdown. Eventually the towel would be thrown in on his behalf later in the third. Later on, Tszyu would admit that he really didn't know what hit him. "When I landed that first big shot, I knew how hard it was,” said Murtazaliev. “Tszyu is a real warrior and I hope one day we can work together and spar and help each other to grow."
Suddenly, Murtazaliev is now squarely in the mix for some big money fights at junior middleweight. No longer is he just a guy with a belt, but someone that soundly defeated one of the money players in the division. While Tszyu is left to pick up the pieces on what has been a turbulent year professionally.
"Every time I step into the ring I leave it all in there,” said Tszyu. “Things didn't go to plan and the better man won tonight. No excuses. After the first shot, things started not going according to plan. That's part of boxing, you get hit and reactions get slower. Bakhram is the man at 154."
