SYDNEY — Tim Tszyu is nearing a deal to challenge Erislandy Lara for the WBA middleweight world title, according to No Limit Boxing CEO George Rose. The potential championship bout is targeted for December in Australia, marking a significant opportunity for the 31-year-old to secure a title in a second weight division.
“We’ve had great discussions with Lara’s team and I feel like something is close to being announced,” Rose told Fox Sports Australia. Tszyu, the former WBO super-welterweight world champion, enters the potential matchup following a high-profile victory over Errol Spence Jr. in July. That win, which saw Spence retire post-fight, served as Tszyu’s first under the guidance of lead trainer Jeff Fenech.
Fenech acknowledged the tactical challenge posed by the 42-year-old Cuban champion. “I’ve looked at his age and I’ve looked at his fighting and Lara fights nothing like a guy who is 42,” Fenech said. “He is just so skilful, so dominant and the reason Lara has the record he does, it’s because he makes people fight his fight. My job is to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Should Tszyu defeat Lara, he would join Fenech and Liam Paro as one of the few Australian boxers to capture world titles in multiple weight classes. Tszyu remains undefeated in Australia, a streak he looks to maintain as he pursues the WBA middleweight crown.