In a big upset, IBF junior middleweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KOs) massacred Tim Tszyu (24-2, 17 KOs), knocking him out in the third round on Saturday night at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida.
(Credit: Joseph Correa/Premier Boxing Champions)
Tszyu was knocked down three times in the 2nd round and once in round 3. Tszyu’s corner tossed in the towel when he was getting pounded by Murtazaliev in the third round. The time of the stoppage was at 1:55.
Undercard results:
– Unbeaten junior middleweight contender Yoenis Tellez (9-0, 7 KOs) stopped Johan Gonzalez (35-4, 33 KOs) in the seventh round in the chief support bout. The time of the stoppage was at 1:57 of the seventh.
Tellez got off to a slow start, taking a lot of shots from the 33-year-old Gonzalez in the first two rounds, but then took command of the contest in the third round. In the sixth round, the 24-year-old Cuba native Tellez knocked Gonzalez down with a right hand on the jaw.
Fortunately for Gonzalez, the knockdown came in the final seconds of the round. In round seven, Tellez knocked Gonzalez down with a left hook. You could tell that Gonzalez was badly hurt. He reached his feet at the count of eight to resume fighting. Tellez then finished Gonzalez off with a right hand that put him down for the second time in the round. The referee then waived it off.
– In an exciting contest, middleweight Mateo Tapia (17-0-1, 10 KOs) and Endry Saavedra (16-1-1, 13 KOs) battled to a 10-round majority draw. Saavedra knocked Tapia down three times. He was dropped twice in the third and once in round nine. In the fifth, Tapia sent Saavedra to the canvas with a booming right hand.
The scores
– 94-92 for Tapia
– 93-93
– 93-93
– Coming off a long two-year layoff, super bantamweight Gary Antonio Russell (20-1, 13 KOs) defeated Jaden Burnias (6–3, 4 KOs) by a fourth-round knockout.
– Heavyweight prospect Dainier Pero (9-0, 7 KOs) destroyed veteran Willie Jake, Jr. (11-6-2, 3 KOs) by a third-round knockout.
Event information:
Start time: 8:00 p.m. ET.
Broadcaster: PBC on Prime Video
Location: Caribe Royale in Orlando, Florida.
Tszyu Coming Back
The former WBO junior middleweight champion Tszyu is fresh off a bloody 12-round split decision defeat against Sebastian Fundora on March 30th.
That fight may have taken something out of the 29-year-old Tszyu, as he soaked up a ton of shots from the 6’6″ Fundora, who isn’t the biggest puncher but he nailed him a lot.
Tszyu suffered a gash on his forehead in the second round from an elbow, and after that, he fighting blind for the most part. It was target practice for Fundora.
Tszyu-Murtazaliev Complete card at 8:00 p.m. ET
Tim Tszyu vs Bakhram Murtazaliev
Mateo Tapia vs Endry Saavedra
Yoenis Tellez vs Johan Gonzalez
Jocksan Blanco vs Angel llaraza
Damazion Vanhouter vs Nosa Divine Nehikhare
Daniel Pero vs Willie Jake Jr.
Justin Viloria vs Diuhl Olguin
This will be Murtazaliev’s first defense of his IBF 154-lb title that he captured earlier this year on April 6th. it took the talented Murtazaliev 10 years to finally get a world title shot, and he took advantage of the opportunity by knocking out Jack Culcay in the 11th round.
Tim Tszyu is taking on a punching machine in IBF junior middleweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev Tonight at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida. Tszyu (24-1, 17 KOs) is facing a powerful knockout artist in the main event, hoping to become a two-time 154-lb champion.
