By Ian S Palmer
Unbeaten Tim Tszyu of Australia will be making his American debut this Saturday, March 26th when he takes on Terrell Gausha of Cleveland, Ohio. The 12-round junior-middleweight bout can be seen live in America on Showtime while fans in Canada can catch it on TSN 2. Tszyu last fought in November when he defended his WBO Global Super Welterweight Title against Takeshi Inoue by 12-round unanimous decision and also captured Inoue’s WBO Asia Pacific Title. Gausha last boxed in March, 2021 when he stopped Jamontay Clark in the second round.
The Tszyu name is well known in boxing as Tim is the son of former world champion Kostya Tszyu and the 27-year-old climbs into the ring with a perfect mark of 20-0 with 15 Kos. He stands just under 5-feet-9-inches tall with a 72-inch and possesses better-than-average power with an impressive current knockout ratio of 75 per cent.
He’s boxed 95 rounds since making his pro debut in 2016 and has also captured the interim WBA Oceania, WBC Asian Boxing Council Continental, IBF Australasian, Commonwealth, and Australian Super Welterweight Titles since turning pro. Tszyu’s first step up in class came in August, 2020 when he stopped former world champion Jeff Horn in the seventh round.
Tszyu hasn’t faced any other legitimate world contenders as of yet other than Inoue as he once fought for the WBO World Super Welterweight Title. However, he does have wins over the likes of Dennis Hogan, Wade Ryan, Jack Brubaker, Ruben Webster, Larry Siwu, Denton Vassell, Joel Camilleri and the late Dwight Ritchie. He’s taking a step in the right direction again here as Inoue was a formidable opponent and the same can be said about Gausha.
The 34-year-old Gausha had a fine amateur career and represented the USA at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, England. He’s a former Golden Gloves and National Champion but was eliminated at the Olympics after two bouts. Gausha will climb through the ropes with a mark of 22-2-1 with 11 Kos. He stands 5-feet-10-inches tall with a 73.5-inch reach, giving him a 1.5-inch height and reach advantage on Tszyu.
Gausha turned pro back in 2012 after the Olympics and has boxed 148 rounds since then. His first loss came to Erislandy Lara by unanimous decision in October, 2017 in a shot at the WBA and IBO world titles and his second defeat came at the hands of Erickson Lubin via a 12-round unanimous decision in September, 2020. That entertaining tilt was for the vacant WBC Silver Super Welterweight Title and his lone draw was a 10-round affair with Austin Trout in 2019.
Gausha has also beaten Charles Whittaker, Luis Grajeda, Joey Hernandez, Luis Hernandez and Eliezer Gonzalez. He doesn’t really have much one-punch power in his fists as he possesses a current knockout ratio of 44 per cent. His power shouldn’t be taken lightly though, especially when combined with his speed. Gausha has a pretty good chin and boxing skills and is taking another step up in class here against Tszyu.
Prediction…
At this stage of his career, Tszyu isn’t exactly at the same level as his famous his father, but he still owns plenty of power and speed in his fists. This is another good test for him as Gausha is a solid pro with plenty of experience. This definitely won’t be an easy fight for Tszyu but if he fights to his potential I’m expecting him to earn a victory in a hard-fought battle.
