Tim Tszyu plans to test Errol Spence's heart in Australia clash

Tim Tszyu intends to push Errol Spence into uncomfortable territory when they meet July 26 in Australia, questioning how much the former welterweight champion still wants after a three-year layoff.

Tszyu told Ring Magazine he plans to make Spence regret skipping a tune-up fight. The Australian sees stylistic opportunities against Spence's pressure game, but more than that, he wants to attack the mental side — whether Spence, who has already banked millions and tasted the summit, still has the hunger to grind through adversity. "How bad does he want it when you've been there, done that in the sport?" Tszyu said, per Bad Left Hook. "It's sort of like 'Do I need to this? Do I need to keep on going?' That's what I want to test when he starts talking to himself."

Tszyu banking on Spence's long absence

Spence has not fought since Terence Crawford stopped him in July 2023, ending a run that saw him collect four welterweight belts. Tszyu acknowledged Spence's strengths — constant pressure, precise timing, a sink-or-swim mentality — but believes those tools require the right mindset to deploy. "If you take the heart away from him then he's gone," Tszyu added.

The fight takes place in Tszyu's home country, where he has built a reputation as one of the junior middleweight division's most active contenders. For Spence, the bout represents a chance to prove his 2023 defeat was an outlier rather than a turning point. Tszyu sees it differently. "It's the last hurrah for Errol Spence," he said. "Get in and watch his last fight."

Photo: Texas A&M University-Commerce Marketing Communications Photography / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0

Original reporting:

• badlefthook.com — Tim Tszyu plans to test the heart of Errol Spence | Bad Left Hook