By Adam Baskin: Tim Tszyu will battle the heavy-handed Brian Mendoza on Sunday, October 15th, at a still-to-be-determined venue in Australia. Tszyu vs. Mendoza will be shown live on Foxtel’s main event and Kayo Sports.
This is a fight between two of the biggest punchers in the junior middleweight division, and the winner will be viewed as the division’s king.
Tszyu (23-0, 17 KOs) will have his WBO junior middleweight title at stake, while Mendoza (22-2, 16 KOs) will have his WBC interim belt on the line.
It’s unclear if the World Boxing Council will elevate Mendoza to full WBC 154-lb champion by October 15th, but it’s a move that would make sense.
With undisputed junior middleweight champion Jermell Charlo abandoning his duty to defend against his WBO mandatory Tszyu to face Canelo Alvarez at 168 on September 30th, he’ll be stripped when he enters the ring. Tszyu will be made full WBO champion.
Assuming that Jermell will choose to stay at 168 if he defeats Canelo, the WBC interim 154-lb belt that Mendoza holds will likely be elevated to full champion.
That’ll put the Tszyu vs. Mendoza in a position to defend against Terence Crawford or Errol Spence Jr. in what would be a massive fight.
Tim Tszyu: “I expect a war and Mendoza to test me more than any other fighter. He has power in both hands and has shown he thrives off being that underdog.”
Mendoza has looked dangerous lately, having knocked out Sebastian Fundora and Jeison Rosario in his last two fights.
The 29-year-old Mendoza has always been powerful, but he’s made a massive improvement in his game since losing to Jesus Alejandro
Ramos Jr. by a ten round unanimous decision in 2021.
Tszyu will need to get to Mendoza early like he did his last opponent Carlos Ocampo, if he doesn’t want to run into potential problems. Tim looked devastatingly powerful in his knockout of Ocampo.
No Limit Boxing CEO George Rose: “Tim Tszyu is the new king of the super-welterweight division, and true kings go out and take what’s theirs. Tim only wanted the toughest test in his division. Brian Mendoza is that guy.”
It’s unlikely that Jermell Charlo will return to 154, so if Tszyu beats Mendoza, his next fight could be against Crawford or Spence if they’re willing to face him.
“When you’re at the level Tim Tszyu is at and chasing ‘undisputed,’ taking down a guy who can bring a belt to the table,” said Rose.
