Tszyu is trying to copy the Sebastian Fundora playbook, however the comparison exposes exactly why his latest vs. old logic feels so flawed.
On March 28, Fundora successfully defended his WBC title by stopping Keith Thurman within the sixth round. Fundora used a big-name, inactive veteran to legitimize his reign, and Tszyu is clearly attempting to do the identical with Errol Spence.
“Look what happened with Thurman. Errol Spence is form of in that generation, and that’s what I need to do, bring the brand new with the old now,” said Tszyu to Brian Custer’s site.
When Fundora beat Thurman, he was a champion defending a belt. When Tszyu talks about doing the identical to Spence, he’s doing it as a contender who lost to Fundora twice. Fundora used a veteran to consolidate power. Tszyu is using a veteran to reconstruct a shattered fame.
If he beats a 36-year-old Spence who hasn’t fought in three years, it only proves he can beat a legendary welterweight who stayed away too long.
In the present 154-lb division, the “latest” guys are Xander Zayas and Vergil Ortiz Jr. At 31, with a recent 2-3 record in high-level fights, Tszyu is closer to the “old” generation he claims to be replacing.
Tszyu is banking on the Spence name to act as a fame eraser. He hopes that if he knocks out a legend, everyone will forget he was dropped multiple times by Murtazaliev and out-pointed/stopped by Fundora.
Beating a faded Errol Spence won’t give him the peak to take care of Fundora’s reach or the chin to face up to Murtazaliev’s power in the event that they meet again. It’s an enormous payday, rumored at $15M, but as a press release of dominance, it’s more of a marketing illusion than a sporting reality.
