American superstar Errol Spence Jnr has offered to fight Tim Tszyu during an incredibly tense ‘Face to Face’ interview which also saw the Australian accused of being both a liar and disrespectful to the future Hall Of Famer.
Tszyu, meanwhile, has questioned how he can possibly talk up exactly what form of Spence will be fronting a card billed as the biggest in Australian boxing history, especially with ‘The Truth’ having spent three years out of the ring.
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Less than a fortnight out from the July 26 Tszyu-Spence blockbuster in Sydney, American promoters PBC have released a piece which, hosted by ‘Showtime’ Shawn Porter, has involved the headliners trading barbs for several minutes.
At one point as the fighters eyed each other from across a table, Spence even accused Tszyu of lying about not knowing what was coming before asking: “You wanna spar today?”
Unsurprisingly, Tszyu had absolutely no problem with that.
Around which time, Porter — who will be working the Main Event commentary desk on Sunday week — reminded both men that nobody gets paid for sparring, and that they should save the animosity for their hyped Afterpay Arena event.
While the pair were largely cordial for most of the interview, things heated up late when Porter asked Spence if the Australian was ready for him?
“I think so,” the former welterweight king replied. “Why wouldn’t he be?”
But then when Tszyu was asked the same?
“We shall see,” the Aussie deadpanned.
Which, immediately, brought a response from Spence.
“He cap on that,” fired the longtime superstar who boasts wins over the likes of Mikey Garcia, Kell Brook, Yordenis Ugas, Danny Garcia, Chris Algieri, even Porter. “He know better than that.”
Tszyu: “What’s cap?”
Spence: “Cap. Means you’re not telling the truth.”
Tszyu: “I’m bluffing?”
Spence: “Yeah”
Tszyu: “We shall see …”
Spence, getting more animated now, continued: “Nah, there ain’t no ‘we shall see’. You know how I come. You know how …”
Tszyu: “I know what you’re made of, of course. But what I’m saying is, when it comes to fight night, as Mike Tyson once said ‘when you get hit, all your plans change’. So that’s it. We shall see.”
Spence: “Alright”.
Tszyu: “I’m not saying it in a disrespectful way am I? I’m saying it in a respectful way.”
Spence: “[Saying] ‘we shall see’ is like, he may be ready …”
Tszyu: “Well, how am I supposed to know?”
Spence: “It’s kind of dismissive.”
Tszyu: “No, no. I respect what you’ve done in your career. But you haven’t had a fight in three years. How can I say this, this, this …”
Which is when the American kicked it up a notch.
“You wanna spar today?” Spence fired from across the table.
Tszyu: “Let’s go.”
Spence: “We can spar?”
Tszyu: “Let’s go.”
Spence: “C’mon then.”
At which point, Porter quickly interrupted to remind the pair how nobody gets paid to spar.
Then turning towards Tszyu, and in a bid to continue the conversation, Porter continued: “Listen, he gave a definitive answer, saying ‘he’s ready for me’. And I think he wanted that definitive answer back. You said ‘well see’ …”
Tszyu: “I can’t give a definitive answer.”
Spence: “And that’s OK because he don’t know. Like I said to the reporters, people got questions on how is Errol Spence gunna show up. Is he 60 per cent, 70 per cent? Is he still good? And I’ve said [those questions] are just. So maybe I am being a little combative.”
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To which, Porter then asked exactly where this fight will take place? Middle of the ring?
“We shall see,” Spence laughed.
Turning then toward Tszyu, Porter asked if the man sat opposite was everything he had expected him to be.
“Yeah, he is,” the Aussie grinned. “And his shiny white teeth”.
But this time, Spence wasn’t biting, Instead, and when asked if Tszyu was as advertised, he replied: “Yeah, he’s 30, looks strong.”
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While the interview was only released on Tuesday in Australia, it was actually shot several weeks ago, and straight after the two headliners had appeared on stage at a Las Vegas press conference to announce the fight.
As a result, Porter kicked things off early with questions about Spence having snubbed his handshake offer.
“I respect him,” the American started. “But it’s more about the timing and the moment. We’re gearing up for war.
“I’m coming into his home country. He’s looking to retire me while I’m looking to take over in his country. Disappoint him and his fans. And I told him, I’ll shake his hand and give him a hug after the fight. But right now, it’s war time. Time to go.”
To which says what?
“That’s alright,” he replied. “If we’re going to play like that, that’s alright. I get how it is and I’m sweet with that.”
So it’s war now, Porter asked?
“There’s no war now,” Tszyu continued. “But there is gunna be war on fight night. And I’m geared up for it. I’m locked in now. This has just made me more focused.”
Which is also how it stayed even until late in proceedings, when the pair were also both asked if they had any last words?
“Ah, I don’t really have any last words,” Spence said. “Just be ready. I’m looking forward to coming to Australia. I’m looking forward to fighting in front of your hometown fans. And I’m looking forward to disappointing you and your fans …”
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“Good,” Tszyu replied. “Talk is cheap. I’ll let my actions do the talking.”
To which, Spence replied: “We shall see”.
“We shall see,” Tszyu said.