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<\/p>\n
The winner of the all-Australian headliner will then go straight into a shot at IBF champion Josh Kelly.<\/p>\n
Like Tszyu, Mahoney is also on an undefeated tear, and has previously acted as a sparring partner in some of Tim Tszyu\u2019s training camps.<\/p>\n
While no venue has yet been set for the eliminator, potential venues include Gold Coast, Melbourne, Sydney, even Adelaide.<\/p>\n
Speaking on Tuesday night, No Limit CEO George Rose confirmed a world title opportunity was now within reach for his 28-year-old star, who is undefeated in all 12 fights since turning professional.<\/p>\n
The news comes as the promoter is also readying for this Sunday\u2019s Sydney showdown between Tim Tszyu and American superstar Errol Spence Jnr.<\/p>\n
\u201cNikita Tszyu is the genuine star of Australian boxing, and now he\u2019s got another world-rated Australian standing across from him with world title glory at stake,\u201d Rose said. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t get any bigger than that.<\/p>\n
\u201cBen Mahoney is as tough as they come. A lot of people thought this fight shouldn\u2019t happen, but these are two genuine fighters who back themselves, and the fans are the ones who reap the rewards.<\/p>\n
\u201cExpect brutality. Expect raw power. Expect absolute fireworks. Two undefeated Australians, ranked inside the world\u2019s top 10, with everything on the line. This is what the sport is supposed to look like.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nikita Tszyu flexes after weighing in during the official weigh in at Charlestown Square on May 05, 2026 in Newcastle, Australia. (Photo by Matt King\/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Currently, \u2018The Butcher\u2019 is ranked at number seven with the IBF, while Mahoney is two spots further back.<\/p>\n
However, with the top two placements in the rankings both vacant, No Limit have confirmed the August bout will also double as a title eliminator.<\/p>\n
Speaking with Fox Sports Australia last month, both Mahoney and his promoter, Tasman Fighters boss Mick Francis, confirmed No Limit had put an offer to the 31-year-old.<\/p>\n
As hardcore Aussie boxing fans will know, Mahoney is also the man who famously broke the jaw of fellow Queenslander Benjamin Hussain in a 2020 classic.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I\u2019m not here to f*** around,\u201d the undefeated puncher told us. \u201cRight now, I\u2019m in my prime as a fighter and the winner of this fight between Nikita and I, they\u2019ll then go on to massive things.<\/p>\n
\u201cHonestly, I\u2019m getting goosebumps just talking about it now. And that\u2019s because I have such belief in what I can do.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, if Nikita isn\u2019t ready to test himself with a fight like this, or I wasn\u2019t ready \u2026 we shouldn\u2019t be doing this sport.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I\u2019m the biggest test of Nikita Tszyu\u2019s career, I can guarantee that.\u201d<\/p>\n
“That’s Cap” Tszyu\/Spence fiery face-off | 01:42<\/p>\n
So as for his thoughts on the younger Tszyu?<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got a lot of respect for Nikita,\u201d Mahoney continued. \u201cHe\u2019s a good fighter who is big, strong, explosive, and comes in there to get his fights done.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut there are also a lot of holes in his game. I won\u2019t go into those though. And obviously his power is his strength.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut we\u2019ve seen that when he fights guys who are tough and durable \u2013 fighters like Ben Horn and Koen Mazoudier \u2013 that power doesn\u2019t always do the damage it needs to.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that\u2019s when he gets himself in trouble. So I know I\u2019ve got a great chin, I\u2019m experienced, durable and move well. I also have power myself and am a lot smarter than these other guys [he\u2019s fought].<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a fight that not only makes sense, but where the winner goes on to huge things.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nikita Tszyu is suddenly on the cusp of a world title blockbuster after signing off on an IBF…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":814298,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[571],"tags":[64,63,802,85],"class_list":["post-814297","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-boxing","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/814297","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=814297"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/814297\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/814298"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=814297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=814297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=814297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}