Burgess bout in the works for ex-NRL crossover star in epic nine-fight plan<\/a><\/p>\nMalignaggi also took aim at Zerafa\u2019s fight week demeanour – and questioned the \u201ctelling\u201d thing he hasn\u2019t been saying to journalists – while also suggesting Tszyu draws comparisons, of sorts, to the legendary Gatti.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere, the American great also likened Tszyu\u2019s response to being dropped, or hurt, in previous fights with Puerto Rican great Felix Trinidad \u2013 and mentioned, specifically, the Sydneysider being knocked down by Dylan Biggs in round one of their 2023 bout.<\/p>\n
Ironically, Porter also used the phrases \u201cdumb\u201d and \u201cstupid\u201d when explaining how Tszyu could overcome longtime world title contender Zerafa, who doubles as easily the toughest test of his career. <\/p>\n
Is Nikita disciplined enough for Zerafa? | 04:56<\/p>\n
The two-time welterweight king also later suggested a better word might be the \u201crawness\u201d of Tszyu, who has started his professional career on a run of 11 straight wins.<\/p>\n
Speaking early in proceedings, Maliganaggi also insisted Friday\u2019s showcase is not an evenly split fight, but \u201c60\/40 for Nikita Tszyu\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that\u2019s not to disrespect Mike Zerafa, who has been a solid fighter,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut there comes a point in your career where you\u2019ve been a little bit used up and you need to dig in.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been through it, Shawn has been through it \u2026 it comes.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause you\u2019ve accomplished so much, your name becomes a resume filler for someone else.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that irritates you.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou say \u2018I\u2019m not a resume filler, I can still do this\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd being a resume filler, it isn\u2019t bad. You get the opportunity to pull off an upset, and sometimes you do.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes you also want that negativity to motivate you and say \u2018you know what I will prove you wrong\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut when you\u2019ve been there [like Zerafa] it\u2019s also a double edged sword.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause, yes, you know what it takes to overcome it, and sometimes you have.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you can also be at a point in your career where you\u2019re like \u2018man, I do not want to go down this path again tonight\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s like \u2018do I really have it in me to go down this path again?\u2019. And sometimes you don\u2019t \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Shawn Porter and Paulie Malignaggi on the pre-Tszyu vs Zerafa round table.Source: FOX SPORTS<\/p>\n
Malignaggi then warned however that time, and question, comes for all ageing fighters.<\/p>\n
But Tszyu?<\/p>\n
\u201cNikita has the ignorance is bliss mentality,\u201d Malignaggi stressed. \u201cHe almost doesn\u2019t know what he\u2019s getting himself into.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that can be a positive.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause when you do get yourself into trouble, you don\u2019t really know how deep that well goes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got hit, I\u2019m gunna get up and keep fighting …\u201d<\/p>\n
Around which time, Porter interjected.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s crazy because he [Malignaggi] is betting against the intelligence,\u201d he said. \u201c[Saying] Nikita is dumb enough, stupid enough, because he\u2019s young enough \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Paulie: \u201cAnd in a good way, we were all that dumb\u201d.<\/p>\n
Porter: \u201cNikita is young enough to do the right things. What does that mean? If he should take a big punch, he\u2019s going to come right back. He\u2019s just stupid enough to not know better.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut then Zerafa is also smart enough to do the wrong things. What does that mean? The rounds can be going as hard as he trained for them to go, but now he\u2019s realising in the moment and he might succumb to it. Pull back, and do the wrong things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Malignaggi: \u201cAnd me and Shawn aren\u2019t just saying this to say it. We\u2019re saying it because we\u2019ve watched it ringside, we\u2019ve experienced it ourselves \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Mundine, meanwhile, said Tszyu\u2019s inexperience may actually play against him, which has him tipping Zerafa by decision.<\/p>\n
Mundine breaks down Tszyu v Zerafa | 03:12<\/p>\n
Malignaggi, meanwhile, said he was tipping Tszyu to win by KO, while Porter said he was also tipping a Prettty Boy decision, like Choc. <\/p>\n
Said Mundine: \u201cI think Nikita\u2019s \u2026 I wouldn\u2019t say dumbness \u2026 but his lack of experience at this level, he\u2019ll come in and want to overwhelm Michael. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo Michael needs to be strategic \u2013 pot shot, not get hit, not get caught in that game.\u201d<\/p>\n
At which point, Porter said: \u201cI said stupid, dumb, I know those aren\u2019t the best words \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Damon: \u201c[Laughs] I don\u2019t think Nikita would care\u201d.<\/p>\n
Paulie: \u201cNa\u00efve?\u201d<\/p>\n
Porter: \u201cThe word I like even more is immature. He\u2019s immature as a boxer, immature in the ring, and he\u2019s \u2026<\/p>\n
Paulie: \u201cRaw.\u201d<\/p>\n
Porter: \u201cHe\u2019s raw and that leads to him taking chances that a lot of people wouldn\u2019t take. The very first time I saw him fight, he got put on the canvas [by Biggs] and I thought \u2018that wasn\u2019t supposed to happen\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then like you said Paulie, he gets up and continues to smash this kid round after round. I was like \u2018this guy is amazing\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
“He’ll bring the heat” Paro backs Zerafa | 02:46<\/p>\n
Elsewhere, Malignaggi said the first couple of rounds would be key.<\/p>\n
Yet he also stressed, again, that as Tszyu proved against Biggs \u2013 who had also dropped him during a sparring session years before they fought \u2013 he still doesn\u2019t know how deep his own well of resistance goes if troubled early.<\/p>\n
\u201cZerafa could be blown away in the first few rounds,\u201d Malignaggi said. \u201cAnd he has been.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut he gets through it? He starts making Nikita think.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut again, Nikita has this ignorance is bliss thing. It doesn\u2019t even matter.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can make him think but he\u2019s going in there to attack you like a caveman.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo the rawness of Nikita is both good and bad. I think Nikita has a bit of an Arturo Gatti-esque career in front of him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe takes shots, ends up on his butt, but he gets up and has this raw punching power. Like a caveman. He\u2019ll hit you upside the head and knock you all over the place. What was that guy? Briggs?\u201d<\/p>\n
Damon: \u201cDylan Biggs\u201d.<\/p>\n
Paulie: \u201cThat was crazy. He\u2019d been [knocked] down in the gym, then he was down in round one, but gets up and beats this guy all over the ring as if nothing happened. As if there was no history there. It\u2019s the ignorance is bliss.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Zerafa gets off to a good start, a normal person gets into their own head.<\/p>\n
\u201cLike Nikita might if he\u2019s had 30 fights.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut he only has 12 fights. He doesn\u2019t have enough experience to get in his own head. All he knows is \u2018you know what, I\u2019m going right at you \u2026 take this, and this, and this\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd if Zerafa starts taking it, he goes down that path of \u2018OK, I\u2019ve been here before\u2019. Do I have what I gotta do to get out of here? And only Zerafa has that answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tszyu says Zerafa fight is ‘do or die’ | 00:31<\/p>\n
Later, he added: \u201cNikita, he\u2019s hittable. His defence is a little weak.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wouldn\u2019t shock me if Zerafa puts him on the canvas.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe thing is, we\u2019ve seen how Nikita reacts when he is put on the canvas.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe doesn\u2019t stay hurt.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe reacts like \u2013 and I don\u2019t really want to say because it\u2019s too early to make the comparison \u2013 but Felix Trindad.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen he used to get knocked down and come back.<\/p>\n
\u201c[For opponents] it was worse. You almost didn\u2019t want to knock him down …\u201d<\/p>\n
Malignaggi also questioned Zerafa\u2019s demeanour in fight week interviews<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I\u2019ve been in this position myself,\u201d he said of an ageing fighter questioning himself. \u201cAnd I know in that moment, it\u2019s not the money that motivates you to get out. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s your ambition that motivates you.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd by that point in your career, your motivation isn\u2019t the same.<\/p>\n
\u201cMike Zerafa has said some key things in this promotion.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s said \u2018the pressure is on Nikita, I can just go back to my gym and hold pads\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you\u2019ve never been a world champion Mike.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should be saying \u2018I\u2019ve never been world champion, and my goal is to end my career that way. I\u2019ve got to experience that\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut he isn\u2019t saying that. And that\u2019s telling to me.\u201d <\/p>\n
Paro, meanwhile, suggested he would be telling Zerafa to \u201cbox smart and stay composed early\u201d if he wants to upset the younger man.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Nikita is going to come out and try and stamp his authority,\u201d he said. \u201cSo he has to box smart. Find openings. Be smart and snappy.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"American boxing greats Shawn Porter and Paulie Malignaggi are split when it comes to who wins Australia\u2019s greatest…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":409973,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[447],"tags":[703,49,48,82],"class_list":["post-409972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-boxing","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/409972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=409972"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/409972\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/409973"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=409972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=409972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=409972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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