The pair will enter the ring on Friday night, but before then the trash talk was supposed to continue in Wednesday\u2019s official press conference, especially when you consider what the younger Tszyu brother had said in the lead-up.<\/p>\n
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Tszyu claimed in an interview with <\/a>foxsports.com.au<\/a> this week that he had plans to make Zerafa \u201cbreak mentally\u201d, adding that he believes his opponent has never recovered from the \u201ctrauma\u201d of being stretchered from the ring in 2015 after his knockout loss to American Peter Quillin in 2015.<\/p>\n It is far from the only verbal jab Tszyu has thrown at Zerafa in the lead-up to Friday\u2019s fight, with the 27-year-old also declaring his fierce rival \u201chasn\u2019t shown much\u201d<\/a> in the past two years.<\/p>\n Zerafa, meanwhile, suggested that Nikita\u2019s brother Tim was gifted a world title shot because of his surname in their face-off interview with Main Event\u2019s Ben Damon<\/a> while also questioning if the younger Tszyu has the experience to be talking so much smack.<\/p>\n Outside of that, however, Zerafa hasn\u2019t engaged in the same verbal warfare that has dominated his relationship with Nikita\u2019s older brother Tim over the years.<\/p>\n It was put to Zerafa on Wednesday that it may be a deliberate tactic given Nikita usually thrives when he develops a strong hatred for his opponent, but the 33-year-old insisted he wasn\u2019t putting on an act.<\/p>\n Instead, as Tszyu put it in the press conference, it just seemed like Zerafa was showing a \u201cdifferent side\u201d.<\/p>\n ULTIMATE GUIDE: Full card, when the main event will start and who punters are tipping<\/a><\/p>\n Zerafa: experience key in Tszyu bout | 00:18<\/p>\n \u201cThis fight he hasn\u2019t been showing so much animosity,\u201d Tszyu said. <\/p>\n \u201cHe had a lot of animosity with my brother. But in this time round, it\u2019s been very neutral, very respectful. It\u2019s a different side of Michael that we haven\u2019t seen before.\u201d<\/p>\n Zerafa did at one point declare he is \u201clevels above\u201d Nikita, but that was really the closest he got to any form of trash talk and that seemed to say more about his confidence than a lack of respect for the younger Tszyu brother.<\/p>\n Zerafa said this fight is about making a \u201cstatement\u201d to the boxing world with one clear message: \u2018I told you so\u2019. <\/p>\n But that doesn\u2019t mean there is any pressure on him, despite Zerafa teasing a world title tilt after his fight against Nikita.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no pressure on me,\u201d Zerafa said.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been there, and I\u2019ve done it. I\u2019ve fought all around the world and fought for world titles and basically won all the titles. My next one is the world title. <\/p>\n \u201cSo, after Nikita, hopefully the promoters can keep their promise and get me that world title. But I\u2019m not looking past that. I\u2019m looking fully focused on what\u2019s ahead on Friday night.\u201d<\/p>\n READ MORE<\/p>\n \u2018I UNDERESTIMATED HIM\u2019: Ex-world champs spill on why Aussie bad boy is actually \u2018underrated\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n