Tszyu Looking To Add Thurman’s Name In The Win Column
Reigning WBO junior middleweight champion Tim “Soul Taker” Tszyu (24-0, 17 KOs) believes he’s the man to beat in the division. But does he give credence to that argument by fighting Keith “One Time” Thurman (30-1, 22 KOs)?
They will battle it out March 30 in Las Vegas, Nevada at a catchweight of 155 pounds on Amazon Prime pay-per-view. Since signing a media rights deal with Amazon Prime in December 2023, Tszyu versus Thurman will be PBC’s debut.
PLENTY OF CYNICISM
It’s been known for months that the champion’s next fight would be in the United States. But in the boxing community, some have criticized this upcoming contest, claiming that Tzsyu could have chosen a better opponent.
Word on the street was that Camp Tszyu was in talks to face former world title challenger Erickson Lubin. But it’s now clear a fight with Lubin will not happen, and a fight with Thurman is now on.
To be fair, Thurman was previously a unified champion at welterweight. His name still carries some cache. The Clearwater, Florida native has been a prominent figure in the sport for the past decade.
But at age 35, Thurman is no spring chicken. He will be fighting within the middleweight range for the first time in his career. To compound matters, One Time hasn’t fought since a unanimous decision win over Mario Barrios in February 2022. Thurman has fought only fought four times in the previous six years!
Given the age and inactivity of the former welterweight champion, there’s a strong argument that the better opponent for Soul Taker was Lubin. Thurman could prove doubters wrong, turn back the clock, and pull off the win.
But at this point and time, it appears that Team Tszyu is settling and banking that the former unified welterweight champion’s will gain them the name recognition they strongly desire.
