As is often the case with big-time boxing, talk turns to the next big boxing night before the nearest one is already complete.

Not long after Keith Thurman withdrew against Tim Tszyu ahead of this weekend’s fight at the T-Mobile in Las Vegas on Saturday (March 30) than Sebastian Fundora was upgraded from the undercard and talk began to center around what might happen for the winner, specifically Tszyu, in his next steps to conquer America.

The WBO announced that pound-for-pounder and welterweight king Terence Crawford would be in line to face the victor, should the Omaha star opt to box at super welterweight, and that is a marquee fight that Tszyu’s No Limits team would not hesitate to accept.

With a tricky assignment ahead of him on Saturday night against the 6ft 5 1/2in southpaw Fundora, there are some apprehensive faces in the Australian press pack, but George Rose, of No Limits, admits it is hard not to be enthusiastic about his fighter being mentioned in the same breath as the brilliant Crawford.

“Very excited. Very excited,” Rose said, of a possible fight with the Nebraskan genius. “We’re big fans of what Crawford does as a fighter, he’s brilliant. He’s pound for pound champ for a reason, and it’s a great challenge.”

Would Tszyu be ready, if all goes well on Saturday, to go straight in against Crawford?

“I think it’s a timing thing for Tim,” Rose added. “Tim doesn’t like to sit around and wait for fights, so if there’s nothing happening in the next few months, he’ll be straight back in the ring again. He’ll be defending these two belts he wins on Saturday.”

Tszyu, who defends his WBO title and fights for WBC recognition on Saturday – is hoping to make a splash against the late replacement. He’s talked of not wanting just to be in the best fight of the night, or even a fight of the year, but a historic battle that is watched over and over by future generations.

Tszyu is universally respected within the sport, and he has a country behind him, too. Despite fielding their share of divisive boxers over the years – think Jeff Fenech (when he was active), Danny Green and Anthony Mundine – Tszyu, 29, has only served to unite on his way to being unbeaten in 24 fights with 17 stoppage victories.

“He’s the king of Australian boxing,” Rose added. “What he does back there, the vibe, the atmosphere that he builds around boxing in Australia, Tim Tszyu is the face of Australian boxing and he has been for a number of years. The fact that we haven’t been able to come across to the States until just recently, it’s something we were looking at doing just before Covid, but things happen and it gave Tim a chance to keep building in Australia.”

It is Tszyu’s courageous and somewhat bullish nature that has endeared him to fans. He could have sat in a top spot and waited for a title chance, but he stayed active and kept learning against good fighters. He could have rejected Fundora, but he kept the show alive and simply promised to batter a very different opponent instead. No matter.

“Tim’s a guy who never backs down, he will take any fight anytime, and he fights regularly,” Rose said, of how Tim has cultivated his reputation. “He stays in the spotlight. He stays in front of people. Tim fights three or four times a year. Now I know that’s not something champions usually do, but for Tim, he’s not a guy to sit around and look at his belts in the house. He’s a guy who wants to get out there, defend his belts, win more, take big fights, take the opportunities, because you can’t do this forever, unfortunately. So he’s going to make the most of it while he’s a young man.”

Plenty have understandably heaped praise on Fundora for taking the fight, having had a camp preparing further down the bill against Serhii Bohachuk, but Tszyu deserves his credit, too, for taking on a fight against a very different shape and type of fighter. For Rose, he said it’s all in a day’s work for fearless Tszyu.

“You ask any man in the world if they’d take Sebastian Fundora on with 12 days’ notice, any man in the world,” Rose smiled, proudly. “I don’t care who you are, you’re not prepared for a guy that is a foot taller than you, that is a southpaw, that’s completely different than you’ve prepared for… That’s a fight that you need 12 weeks or 12 months to prepare for. He [Fundora]’s an anomaly in the super welterweight-junior middleweight division, but Tim’s turned it around, 12 days’ notice, he’s now got to fight a guy who no one else would take on in that time.”

But for Rose, there is no doubt about how Saturday plays out. It plays out he same way as if Tszyu faces any of the other big names at 154, according to the promoter.

“Look, I absolutely believe that Tim can beat any man. I absolutely believe that,” Rose said. “I believe that he’s the best in the division, and any opportunity that presents itself I always know for a fact that they will always take it – and I’ll always support him 100 per cent.”

Tim Tszyu recalled on stage at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on Thursday how he dreamed one night 15 years ago, at the Manny Pacquiao–Miguel Cotto fight, of one day headlining his own Vegas card.

Looking out at a sea of reporters and boxing dignitaries, he locked eyes with none other than Cotto.

And if that wasn’t head-exploding enough, Australia’s Tszyu (24-0, 17 KOs) is also peering out to envision fight nights even greater than this long-awaited dream event.

Not only has recently undisputed welterweight champion Terence Crawford positioned himself through the World Boxing Organization to fight Tszyu within 180 days of Saturday night, word came Thursday that recently deposed three-belt welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. was en route to Vegas to seek a fight with Tszyu.

Reacting to a post on Spence’s X social media account that contained a photo of a Great White shark and a caption reading, “Headed to Vegas. I want the winner!! #TszyuFundora,” Tsyzu didn’t bat an eye.

“Beautiful … these are the types of moments I’ve always wanted,” he said. “Big moments to be getting the big names into a fight.”

Earlier in the day, Tszyu told BoxingScene that he, without question, plans in victory to fight Crawford in the U.S.

On March 30th, Tim Tszyu will face Sebastian Fundora for the WBC and WBO Super-Welterweight titles in Las Vegas. Although Tszyu initially expected to return against Keith Thurman, ‘One Time’ pulled out because of a biceps injury. As a result, ‘The Soul Taker’ will now square off against ‘The Towering Inferno’ who is 7 inches taller than the current WBO Super-Welterweight champ!

But, even though the boxing world is yet to witness the outcome of Tszyu vs. Fundora, it is busy wondering about Tim’s next fight in the ring. Therefore, ‘The Soul Taker’ declared he was open to fighting Canelo Alvarez, Terence Crawford, Errol Spence Jr., and Jaron Ennis!

Tim Tszyu doesn’t want to handpick his opponents

In October last year, following his UD victory over Brian Mendoza, Tim Tszyu had said that if he could fight Canelo Alvarez it would be a matter of privilege and honor. On the other hand, ahead of Tszyu vs. Sebastian Fundora, Terence Crawford’s name has now been linked with ‘The Soul Taker’. On that note, speaking to Fox Sports, Tszyu’s manager Glen Jennings said Crawford vs. Tszyu could be the highest-grossing fight in Australian boxing history, generating a potential figure of $38 Million. In this connection, Tszyu told FightHype, “Anyone can get it. I’m ready for anyone.”

“I fear no one. And I’ll take on every challenge possible,” Tim Tszyu added. On being asked if he would like to face Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford, the Australian boxer said, “Yeah, I’ll take them all, bro. I don’t back from no one. Crawford’s the man, I would love to take on a challenge like that.”

At this, Tszyu was asked how he felt about facing Jaron Ennis, the IBF Interim Welterweight champion. To which, he added, “Who? ‘Boots’? 100% Everyone, bro. Honestly, I don’t want to be this fighter that picks and chooses, man. I’ll fight everyone.”

While Tim Tszyu is open to fighting “everyone,” his manager is more keen on arranging Crawford vs. Tim. As a result, rallying for the mentioned contest, Jennings said that ‘Bud’ vs. ‘The Soul Taker’ would be wonderful not only for Australian boxing but also for the sport worldwide. With that now said, which fighter would you like Tim Tszyu to face next after his battle against Sebastian Fundora? Let us know in the comments below.

Fans everywhere didn’t see it coming. When it came to Tim Tszyu, many were expecting the current WBO junior middleweight champ to either take on Erickson Lubin or possibly Jermell Charlo. Keith Thurman, on the other hand, was essentially an afterthought. The former unified welterweight titlist rarely fights anymore and he’s spent the vast majority of his career campaigning at 147 pounds. So, when it was recently announced that the two would be swapping fists on March 30th, many were left scratching their heads, including Brian “Bomac” McIntyre.

From a betting standpoint, oddsmakers couldn’t care less that Thurman (30-1, 22 KOs) was once viewed as one of the best fighters in the world. They firmly believe that he’ll get pummeled.

Bomac isn’t a fan of making predictions. He reveres both fighters and what they bring to the table. But, when asked to pick a side and stick to it, he admitted that Thurman is a live dog but that Tszyu (24-0, 17 KOs) should walk away with his hand raised.

“I think it’s gonna be a good fight,” Bomac told a group of reporters. “Tim Tszyu has the momentum because Keith has been off for a while. I see the fight going toward Tim Tszyu.”

Being sequestered on the sidelines pretty much sums up Thurman’s career as of late. In six years, he’s fought just three times, including none in the past two years. Sitting back and watching the boxing world pass him by has been the exact opposite of Tszyu’s approach. He’s kept an active schedule and is hoping that a win over Crawford would be enough to grab the attention of Terence Crawford.

Boxing is a sport predicated on one-on-one battles. However, Bomac wishes he could place Crawford in a bit of a difficult situation. Of course, it’ll never happen. But, if for some reason the commission were willing to allow Crawford to fight both Thurman and Tszyu simultaneously, Bomac believes his man would barely break a sweat.

“I think Bud would beat them on the same night.”

Unified welterweight champion Terence Crawford has responded to suggestions that he could be set to move up to the super-welterweight division and take on Tim Tszyu in a bid to become a four-division world champion.

Crawford established himself as boxing’s number one pound-for-pound fighter with a generational stoppage win over Errol Spence Jr back in July, to become the first male multi-divisional four-belt undisputed title-holder.

However, ‘Bud’ has been unable to fight since, after being made to wait for confirmation of Spence’s availability for a second bout following his activation of a rematch clause.

Now it is clear that Spence is unable to fight, as a result of his upcoming cataract surgery, Crawford is free to take on who he pleases, and in an interview with Boxing Social, he admitted that a clash with Tszyu at super-welterweight is one that is definitely on his radar.

As the 36-year-old states, WBO super-welterweight champion Tszyu, has a difficult fight against Thurman to concentrate on.

Although, should Crawford opt to move up in weight, he would become the mandatory challenger for the Aussie’s title and likely force an extremely high-profile showdown, where Tszyu would have the opportunity to make himself a household name around the globe.

Therefore, it is all to play for when Tszyu meets Thurman on March 30th in Las Vegas for PBC’s debut PPV event on Amazon.