The big Kostya reason former world champ is backing Tszyu… and why plenty aren\u2019t<\/a><\/p>\nSpence Jr. vows all-out war with Tszyu | 13:36<\/p>\n
And as for that moment when Spence snubbed his extended hand when crossing paths moments before the press conference to announce their July 26 fight?<\/p>\n
\u201cHe f***ing got me bro,\u201d Tszyu grinned. \u201cNow he\u2019s got me p***ed off\u201d.<\/p>\n
Tszyu added that he has been wanting this fight for five years, continuing: \u201cEver since he started talking smack on Twitter, saying Tony Harrison was going to beat me. He\u2019s just bagged me out. Calling me trash. I thought \u2018you know what, I really want to get this guy\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not a guy who talks badly about people. That\u2019s not me. But I\u2019ve always had this thing against Errol.\u201d<\/p>\n
JUSTIS HUNI IN LINE FOR ASHES BLOCKBUSTER<\/p>\n
Australian heavyweight Justis Huni looks set to headline an Australian pay-per-view event in August, and potentially in a massive Ashes showdown against Englishman Richard Riakporhe.<\/p>\n
This column can also reveal Huni has agreed to at least two more fights with Eddie Hearn\u2019s Matchroom Boxing, with a win in August then guaranteeing a spot on the undercard of Tyson Fury versus Anthony Joshua at the back end of this year.<\/p>\n
Speaking with Fox Sports Australia earlier this month, Hearn tossed up a host of big names for Huni next up, including Deontay Wilder, Jarrell Miller and Derek Chisora.<\/p>\n
However, it\u2019s understood Huni would instead prefer to punch back into the world rankings against Riakporhe, who sits No.10 with the WBC and No.11 with the IBF after previously campaigning as a cruiserweight. <\/p>\n
Justis Hun.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
PARO WON\u2019T BE BULLIED<\/p>\n
Liam Paro says he expects Lewis Crocker to come forward and try to bully him when the pair clash for the IBF welterweight crown on June 24 in Brisbane.<\/p>\n
Crocker, who remains undefeated and will be fighting outside the UK for the first time, has repeatedly claimed he will be the \u201cbigger man\u201d in the showdown with the Queenslander.<\/p>\n
But Paro, a former world champion at super lightweight, insists he will be more than ready for whatever the Belfast fighter brings.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve heard him say in interviews that he\u2019ll be the bigger man, which gives me the feeling he\u2019s going to try and walk through me,\u201d Paro says. \u201cIf anybody says they\u2019re the bigger guy, that\u2019s usually what they\u2019re going to try and do \u2013 bully the so-called smaller fighter.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paro made it clear he has no issue if Crocker chooses that path.<\/p>\n
\u201cI welcome it,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll walk him onto punches all night long until he can\u2019t take them anymore. But if he wants to box off the back foot, we\u2019re ready for that as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Liam ParoSource: Supplied<\/p>\n
TEAM OPETAIA SLAM \u201cBULLS****\u201d BENAVIDEZ CLAIM<\/p>\n
Back on Opetaia, and his team have also taken aim at longtime American promoter Sampson Lewkowicz \u2013 the same man who Tim Tszyu once branded a \u201cweasel\u201d.<\/p>\n
Speaking on The Punch Podcast this week, Lewkowicz suggested there is no chance of his superstar client David Benavidez ever throwing down with Opetaia, given the big punching Aussie has been stripped of the IBF crown.<\/p>\n
While Benavidez claimed two cruiserweight straps against Gilberto \u201cZurdo\u201d Ramirez last weekend, and urged Dana White to make the Opetaia fight, Lewkowicz dismissed the idea before taking a shot at Australia\u2019s cruiserweight king.<\/p>\n
Dubois v Wardley Fight Highlights | 02:56<\/p>\n
\u201cHe lost the belt for money,\u201d the promoter said of Opetaia. \u201cSo now let him keep the money.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe made a very bad decision and the people surrounding him didn\u2019t have the patience to look for the best for their fighter. Money isn\u2019t everything for a fighter. The belt is everything \u2026 [and] he means nothing without the belt.\u201d<\/p>\n
To which Team Opetaia says what?<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s absolute bulls****,\u201d manager Mick Francis fired. \u201cEveryone knows Jai Opetaia is fighting for belts, for legacy \u2013 and not money.<\/p>\n
\u201cBenavidez says he will fight Jai Opetaia, then looks for every reason why it doesn\u2019t suit. I\u2019ve heard he wants a fight with Dmitry Bivol but I\u2019m not sure that happens. So maybe be the end of the year, when there is nothing else, he takes the fight \u2013 because the offer is already on the table.\u201d<\/p>\n
MAN WHO FOUND PACQUIAO SIGNS AUSSIE<\/p>\n
In an interesting aside to The Punch Podcast\u2019s Lewkowicz interview, the man famed for helping discover a young Manny Pacquiao confirmed he\u2019s now guiding hyped Queensland prospect Cooper O\u2019Connell.<\/p>\n
Undefeated in four fights, the 19-year-old son of Australia\u2019s longtime fight queen Shannon O\u2019Connell has been declared a potential world champion by Lewkowicz \u2013 who now has the teenage southpaw living and training fulltime in Las Vegas. <\/p>\n
Elsewhere, the promoter also suggested he would be willing to have another of his star clients, Sebastian Fundora, fight the winner of Tszyu-Spence.<\/p>\n
Tszyu, of course, has already twice fought The Towering Inferno, and lost both times. <\/p>\n
LOMACHENKO RETURNING FOR \u2018BIG FIGHT\u2019<\/p>\n
Boxing superstar Vasiliy Lomachenko is reportedly returning to the ring later this year.<\/p>\n
The Ukrainian maestro, who is considered by many to be the greatest amateur boxer in history, announced his retirement in June last year.<\/p>\n
However, according to Mike Coppinger of The Ring, Lomachenko is preparing a comeback and will target \u201cbig fights\u201d rather than tune-ups, following the expiry of his deal with Top Rank.<\/p>\n
The former world champion\u2019s most recent bout came against Australia\u2019s George Kambosos Jr. in May 2024, where he claimed a dominant win.<\/p>\n
JDM BREAKS HIS SILENCE<\/p>\n
West Aussie UFC star Jack Della Maddalena has broken his silence for the first time since suffering a brutal loss to Carlos Prates in Perth \u2013 and he\u2019s looking at the positives.<\/p>\n
The former welterweight champ was stopped in the third round by the dangerous Brazilian striker in a result that stunned many fight fans.<\/p>\n
Now, for the first time in his pro career, Della finds himself on a two-fight skid.<\/p>\n
\u201cThanks for all the love and support,\u201d he wrote on Instagram. \u201cI could not be prouder to represent my gym @scrappy_mma_and_fitness, my family, my city and country. <\/p>\n
UFC Perth Wrap: Prates schools JDM | 02:59<\/p>\n
\u201cNot the desired result this time around but it was in line with the desired challenge; fighting the most vicious and toughest opponents.\u201d <\/p>\n
Welterweight kingpin Islam Makhachev has suggested that perhaps the Aussie hasn\u2019t fully recovered from their world title showdown in November last year.<\/p>\n
SKYE DENIED SCOTNEY SHOWDOWN<\/p>\n
Australia\u2019s Skye Nicolson may have just seen her long-awaited showdown with Ellie Scotney slip away after the British world champion confirmed this week she is moving up in weight.<\/p>\n
Scotney\u2019s decision to leave the junior featherweight division is a major blow for Nicolson, who has spent months pushing for a blockbuster clash with the undefeated English star.<\/p>\n
The pair have traded shots publicly over the past year, with Nicolson repeatedly insisting Scotney had shown little interest in making the fight happen.<\/p>\n
Now, with Scotney set to campaign at featherweight, the much-discussed bout appears unlikely \u2013 at least for the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n
Nicolson v Turner: Full Fight Highlights | 04:42<\/p>\n
Nicolson told Fox Sports Australia last month she feared the fight was slipping away because both Scotney and Amanda Serrano viewed her as a \u201cbanana skin opponent\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cHearing Ellie talking about Amanda Serrano, it doesn\u2019t give me a lot of hope about our fight being made,\u201d Nicolson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd so that would mean my undisputed chance gone — again.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich is frustrating.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was in the mandatory position for Amanda two years ago, but it didn\u2019t happen because she vacated the belt.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd now it feels like this is what is going to happen again with Ellie \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This is Fox Sports Australia\u2019s combat sports column Fighting Words, where we give you all the latest news…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":669357,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[571],"tags":[11161,323117,2095,219499,43757,8075,323132,64,63,689,323130,2802,112910,215997,24916,29465,5095,802,91240,651,323131,48142,323127,323133,323125,193431,958,323118,7701,13412,14596,60064,176327,9915,285759,3697,176277,259986,323119,172857,31550,323126,27141,142617,27662,323124,121065,2623,323122,323135,1136,2795,323123,73294,239785,2627,1736,2782,176331,2041,2067,677,323121,140787,61495,668,701,288562,249531,2784,323128,21342,85,323129,5942,21760,11859,323134,2614,112900,2813,323120,2753,2792],"class_list":["post-669356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-amanda-serrano","tag-amateur-boxer","tag-america","tag-american-boxing","tag-american-superstar","tag-anthony-joshua","tag-ashes-blockbuster","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-australian-blockbuster","tag-australian-boxing","tag-australian-fighters","tag-australian-heavyweight","tag-australian-star","tag-australian-superstar","tag-blockbuster-clash","tag-boxing","tag-boxing-superstar","tag-brisbane","tag-british-world-champion","tag-carlos-prates","tag-crossing-paths-moments","tag-cruiserweight-king","tag-cruiserweight-straps","tag-cruiserweight-title","tag-dana-white","tag-dangerous-brazilian-striker","tag-daniel-dubois","tag-david-benavidez","tag-della","tag-dominant-win","tag-don-king","tag-eddie-hearn","tag-ellie-scotney","tag-fight-fans","tag-george-kambosos","tag-handshake-snub","tag-hearing-ellie","tag-heavyweight-clash","tag-home-soil","tag-issue-slide","tag-jack-della-maddalena","tag-james-cooney","tag-jeff-fenech","tag-junior-featherweight-division","tag-justis-huni","tag-las-vegas","tag-longtime-american-promoter","tag-longtime-fight-queen","tag-looks-set","tag-manny-pacquiao","tag-massive-lawsuit","tag-mick-francis","tag-mike-coppinger","tag-nevada","tag-new-zealand","tag-nick-walshaw","tag-noel-mikaelian","tag-north-america","tag-northern-america","tag-oceania","tag-pair-clash","tag-pedro-diaz","tag-poster-boy","tag-press-conference","tag-queensland","tag-ring-rust","tag-sampson-lewkowicz","tag-sebastian-fundora","tag-signs-aussie","tag-skye-nicolson","tag-sports","tag-superstar-client","tag-tim-tszyu","tag-title-fight","tag-tony-harrison","tag-undefeated-english-star","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-welterweight-champ","tag-welterweight-crown","tag-welterweight-kingpin","tag-world-champion","tag-world-title-showdown"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/669356","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=669356"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/669356\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/669357"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=669356"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=669356"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=669356"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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