Tim Tszyu To ‘Live And Learn’ After Disastrous Stoppage Loss To Bakhram Murtazaliev

Tim Tszyu said he will “live and learn” from his disastrous knockout defeat to IBF super-welterweight world champion Bakhram Murtazaliev on Saturday.
Tszyu (24-2-0 17 KO) was bidding to become a two-time world champion when he faced Murtazaliev (23-0-0 17 KO) in Orlando, but despite being the heavy favorite, the Australian was completely dominated until the towel came in from his corner during the third round.
Murtazaliev had taken an early advantage by opening up a cut on Tszyu’s head midway through the opening round, and the California-based Russian exploited the challenger’s flimsy defense by sending him to the canvas three times in the second round.
With Tszyu on unsteady legs, he was knocked down again in the third round and received a warning from referee Chris Young that he would wave off the fight if he took another trip to the canvas. Murtazaliev went in for the finish and as the champion threatened to end the fight, Young stepped in at the same time as Tszyu’s corner threw in the towel.
“I can’t recall – I honestly can’t recall,” Tszyu said when asked his thoughts on the fight, appearing to show signs of concussion. “What did I get hit with? I need to regroup, and I dunno, man. S**t doesn’t go your way and you just have to bounce back, you know?”
Tszyu, who previously held the 154-pound WBO title, has now suffered back-to-back defeats having lost to WBC champion Sebastian Fundora in a unification bout in March. On that occasion, the Australian earned plenty of plaudits by fighting on valiantly from an early (and nasty) cut to take Fundora to a split decision.
The loss to Murtazaliev is an entirely different scenario and leaves Tszyu at an unexpected career crossroads.
“I was positive after Fundora, but this didn’t go according to script. It was a little bit different,” Tszyu said. “I felt unbelievable [pre-fight], to be honest with you. I had great prep. So, he got me, man, and he was the better man on this night, and we live and we learn.
“Every time I step into the ring I leave it all in there,” he added. “Things didn’t go to plan and the better man won tonight. No excuses. After the first shot, things started not going according to plan. That’s part of boxing, you get hit and reactions get slower. Bakhram is the man at 154.”
Murtazaliev was full of praise for Tszyu, describing his opponent as a “real man” for fighting on despite being in a world of trouble from the second round onwards.
“Maybe he didn’t recover well, so he didn’t really quite understand what he was doing,” Murtazaliev said. “But he was so brave out there – fighting almost four rounds and the referee gave him so many opportunities to fight – and after four rounds he fought so brave, and I give him a lot of respect. He’s a real man.”
Murtazaliev, who was making the first defense of his IBF belt, is now targeting unification bouts against the rest of the super-welterweight champions.
“My plan is to fight for more titles, against [Errol] Spence, Fundora or [WBA champion Terence] Crawford, but if we cannot make it happen, then we will choose the best option for us, to give us more opportunities.”