Tim Tszyu has had a whirlwind 24 hours, which now has him in the mix to face unbeaten former welterweight world champion Vergil Ortiz Jr in August.
After the WBO ordered Sebastian Fundora to defend his WBO title against the winner of the upcoming Terence Crawford-Israil Madrimov bout before the end of the year, it appeared Tszyu would likely need to wait until early-mid 2025 to get a crack at whoever holds the title at that point.
Never content to wait, Tszyu is reportedly now set to appear on the Crawford-Madrimov card against Ortiz Jr, who has finished all 20 his opponents via stoppage but has had to withdraw from three fights since 2022 due to health issues.
ESPN first reported the news, with the Crawford-Madrimov card set to take place in Los Angeles on August 3 (August 4 in Australia).
MORE: Who is the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world?
When will Tim Tszyu fight next?
If the fight is confirmed, Tszyu will next step into the ring on August 3 (August 4 in Australia) against Vergil Ortiz Jr.
Ortiz first needs to get past Thomas Dulorme this weekend with minimal damage after making his 154lb debut in January against Fredrick Lawson.
It was Ortiz Jr's first fight since June 2022, with three fights cancelled due to rhabdomyolysis.
When was Tim Tszyu's last fight?
Tszyu's last bout was a loss to Sebastian Fundora, which he lost via split decision after 12 rounds of action.
Speaking after the fight, Tszyu said that he didn't regret taking Fundora as a replacement on short notice, and that he is keen to take on whoever is next.
"We'll bounce back, I showed up, no matter what," Tszyu said after the fight.
"No excuses but I was given one week and I'll fight whoever, whenever.
"Even Errol Spence, I'll fight him or Terence Crawford - if you want a good scrap you know who to call.
"It was a good war. It started off well. Fundora’s an awkward type of opponent. Tall, rangy, flicks that jab.
"I couldn’t see anything. Completely blind. No excuses. The better man won tonight and I’m pretty stoked to say that I fought in this arena.
"I looked down and it was like a fountain. I thought ‘this can’t be good.'
"My eyesight was gone. Literally couldn’t see , I had to wipe my eyes non-stop. Physically I still felt alright… you’re fighting with blurry vision. It’s not ideal, especially with Fundora."
Will Tim Tszyu have a rematch with Sebastian Fundora?
The fight didn't go to plan for Tszyu, who came into this clash as a heavy favourite, but luckily for the Australian he will have at least one for crack at the first man to defeat him.
Speaking after the fight, promoter George Rose confirmed that there was a rematch clause in Tszyu and Fundora's contract, and that save for a bigger opportunity they will be activating it.
"He [Fundora’s promoter Sampson Lewkowicz] knows there’s a rematch clause there, If we want to take it, we’ll take it. I’d love to see Tim take that and win them belts straight back. I’m happy for a rematch to happen next and good luck trying to get out of it," Rose said.
"It definitely affects the schedule, everything that we’d sort of planned for this year is now re-jigged.
"If an opportunity to fight Errol Spence or Terence Crawford pops up… you’d be silly to not consider it, but all of those fights are fights that he’d love to have, fights that I’d love to see him in."
Tszyu also confirmed that he would be keen to try for revenge against Fundora.
"Of course I want to [run it back]. I want to fight the best, I want to make the megafights."
Fundora's agent Sampson Lewkowicz backed up Rose's claims, after initially suggesting no rematch clause existed.
“We were all so eager to make this fight that many of our agreements were made verbally,” Lewkowicz said.
“There wasn’t enough time. But I wish to make it clear that Team Fundora will honour the agreement. My word is always equal to a signed contract.
“Tim Tszyu, your rematch is ready when you are.
“If he doesn’t take the rematch, we will take the WBO mandatory or Spence, whatever the WBO says, but the first priority is the rematch with Tim Tszyu.”
Will Tim Tszyu fight Terence Crawford for the WBO belt?
Crawford currently holds three of the four major belts at welterweight, having stopped Errol Spence to unify the division last July, before later being stripped of the IBF title.
With the WBO, "Bud" has been designated as a “Super Champion.”
As part of that organization’s rules, Super Champions can be installed as mandatory challenger to the WBO champion in the division above or below.
Following his defeat, Tszyu no longer holds the WBO belt at 154-pounds, and his loss may see him no longer in contention for a fight against Crawford, with the champion tweeting about Tszyu shortly after the result was announced.
You lost sir gotta work yo way back up
— Terence Crawford (@terencecrawford) March 31, 2024
Earlier in the year, WBO president Francisco Valcarcel spoke to Fight Hype, where he was asked his thoughts on Tszyu's initial match up against Keith Thurman, which was changed to Fundora only two weeks out.
“That will be a tough fight for Tszyu because Thurman can fight,” Valcarcel said.
“On paper, you have to pick Tszyu, but in boxing, anything can happen
“The winner of that fight will have a tough cookie for his next mandatory.”
Valcercel went on to say Crawford would be visiting WBO headquarters in Puerto Rico and suggested something significant could be in the works.
“I can tell you, Crawford will be here next week,” he said.
“I’m not authorised to explain [to] you, make it public, but I have been talking to Crawford for long now.
“This is the first [interview] I’ve talked to about Crawford and the possibility of moving to 154[lb].”
