A candid Tim Tszyu admitted that he thought his fight with Errol Spence Jr could have been the final moment of his career after “dark” days in the lead up to his bout.
Tszyu will live on as a boxer now after defeating Spence by unanimous decision on Sunday.
Tim Tszyu wins by unanimous decision over Errol Spence Jr. Getty Images
Tszyu’s journey to the Spence fight was challenging.
He won bouts against Anthony Velazquez and Denis Nurja but the scars of previous losses still haunted him.
In March 2024 he copped the first loss of his career to Sebastian Fundora before a third round TKO defeat against Bakhram Murtazaliev. He lost again to Fundora in July last year.
Speaking on Main Event, Tszyu compared what it was like fighting those two to Spence and it was clear the impact of the Fundora losses had weighed on him.
“When I fought Sebastian Fundora I was thinking this guy is a nightmare, in all honesty that was a proper loss,” he said.
“I don’t know why but that Murtazaliev one (didn’t feel the same) … I got caught very early and I was a dead man walking and couldn’t test myself or show myself.
“With Fundora, I couldn’t do anything. (Spence’s) calibre, you could feel that but my reaction and speed was probably the difference.”
In the time since those losses, Tszyu has embarked on constant changes.
He cut ties with his long-time team to originally link up with coach Pedro Diaz, before making another change and joining forces with Jeff Fenech.
During that stint with Diaz, Tszyu’s wife Alex revealed he’d considered retirement.
After beating Spence, Tszyu described the lead up as a “rollercoaster”.
Tim Tszyu throws a punch at Errol Spence Jnr. Getty Images
“I’ve gone through hell and back to get to this position and in this prep, I was like this could be it … fighting in front of such a huge audience, this could be done,” he said.
“But you know what? I think when I put that sort of pressure on to myself, I’ve been able to rise, especially when I fought Jeff Horn.
“It was dark, it wasn’t just the losses but everything happening outside. I think I just want to be the definition of resilience, when things aren’t going your way and your back’s against the wall, you’ve got to find that purpose and what you’re fighting for. There were sleepless nights because I was putting it all in … it’s been one hell of a ride.”
Tszyu added that in the morning of his fight with Spence he’d woken up at 4am with nerves despite normally being a full-night sleeper.
“This one was something different,” he said.
Sunday’s fight was the first for Tszyu stepping up to middleweight, having previously been a champion at super welterweight.
After declaring he intends to remain at middleweight, Tszyu now faces potential bouts against the likes of Erislandy Lara and Jesus Ramos, who both hold belts in the division.