Former European super welterweight champion Sergey Rabchenko made a successful return to the ring on Saturday and then promptly targeted world-rated Tim Tszyu, son of the legendary Kostya Tszyu. Rabchenko (30-5, 22KOs) won a comfortable points decision over journeyman Aliaksandr Dzemka (6-11, 2 KOs) over six rounds in Minsk, Belarus and is no stranger to the Land Down Under. In 2014 he lost a very contentious split decision to Anthony Mundine, in a fight many thought he did enough to get his hand raised.
“I feel I have unfinished business in Australia. It is a beautiful place, with great people, but I want to knock out one of their up and coming talents in Tim Tszyu,” said Rabchenko. “I look at Tim Tszyu and think he is talented, not as good as his father obviously, but it is someone I can beat and take his place in the world ratings,” he continued. Currently, the man nicknamed “Tszyu2” is rated 8th by the IBF and 12th by the WBO.
“Sergey boxed well on the weekend, the idea was to get rounds in and shake off any rust since his last fight in June,” said his manager Philippe Fondu. “As a team we have set our sights on Tim Tszyu. The Australian boxing public is familiar with Sergey after his great fight there with Mundine, so we believe it’s probably a fight that can be made quite easily,” Fondu continued.
“I see Tszyu has a fight against another Australian scheduled. If he wants a real challenge after that, all he has to do is get in contact with my team,” stated Rabchenko. “My record is now 30 wins and 5 losses and I plan on making Tszyu win number 31”.
Tszyu probably has no interest in that fight. Rabchenko’s wins in recent years are against guys with these records: 6-10, 4-18-2, 9-13-3, 11-22. Those are the records of all of the guys he’s beaten since 2016. And Rabchenko beat a guy named Bradley Pryce about 6 years ago, who racked up 10 more losses since then. Rabchenko had 0 chance of getting a decision win over Sergio Garcia in Spain, and had minimal chance against Kell Brook in England. I don’t know where the level of opposition for Rabchenko is in recent years. He either has a great chance of winning a fight, or a great chance of losing one, there is no competitive in-between with his fights. Tszyu has to get past his next fight, and then he is probably looking for the winner of Horn vs Zerafa 2 (which should be Zerafa if he keeps his focus and determination to hand Horn another loss, all the while during his training camp).
I’d like to see Tim win the Commonwealth title within the next 6 months. He could make good money in the UK!
Dwight Ritchie would beat rabchenko… but I do feel for rab coz he copped a bad dec here against mun dine, I seen the fight live and it was a bad robbery, I felt bad for the guy, nose dived his career…tim tszyu will not be the killers of the div, how is he ever gunna beat the likes of the charlos and jarret hurd and so on, just aint gunna happen…he will get starched against the big hitters