"He’s finally awake” - Tim Tszyu responds to Errol Spence Jr.'s callout for the winner of his fight with Sebastian Fundora
Tim Tszyu shared a cheeky response to Errol Spence Jr.'s recent callout to face the winner of the upcoming clash between the Australian and Sebastian Fundora.
Spence Jr. has not competed since he suffered the first defeat of his career against Terence Crawford in July 2023. The pair went to war to determine the first undisputed welterweight champion in the four-belt era, with 'Bud' securing a TKO victory in round nine.
'The Truth' has been incredibly quiet since his defeat, but having undergone a cataract surgery severel months ago that ruled out a potential rematch with Crawford, it appears that Spence Jr. is nearing a return to boxing.
The formerly undefeated boxer announced his move to super middleweight (154 pounds) following his defeat last year. With Tszyu holding the WBO super middleweight title, the American seems eager to do battle with 'The Soul Taker'.
During an interview with FightHype ahead of his clash with Fundora, the Australian was informed of Spence Jr.'s callout, and said this:
"Beautiful, he's finally awake. I thought he was asleep for a long time."
Watch Tim Tszyu's interview below from 1:30:
Tim Tszyu may be forced to fight Terence Crawford next, should he defeat Sebastian Fundora
Tim Tszyu is currently preparing for his WBO title defense against Sebastian Fundora, set to take place on March 30.
According to a recent release by Ring Magazine, Terence Crawford has now officially become the WBO mandatory challenger at 154 pounds. 'Bud' used his postition as a WBO 'super champion' to become the mandatory challenger in another weight class, and chose to move up from welterweight to super welterweight.
Should Tszyu defeat Fundora, he may be forced to face off against Crawford next or risk being stripped of his title.
Several weeks after the Nebraska native defeated Errol Spence Jr. to become the undisputed 147-pound champion, he was stripped of the IBF title, as 'Bud' appeared likely to rematch Spence Jr. instead of facing Jaron Ennis, the mandatory challenger.
TalkSPORT boxing editor Michael Benson took to X to share news of Crawford's status, and wrote this:
"Terence Crawford has now used his status as WBO 'super champion' to automatically become mandatory challenger for Tim Tszyu's WBO super welterweight world title. Crawford is WBO mandatory for the Tszyu vs. Fundora winner on Mar. 30."