“Pretty devastated” Tim Tzu was “working on his instincts” amidst a waterfall of blood, thinking his fight with Sebastian Fundora would be called off after sustaining a severe cut.
Tszyu dropped a split decision to Fundora, suffering the first loss of his professional career.
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Tszyu vs. Fundora: Full Fight Highlights | 14:29
It was a cruel way to lose an undefeated record. Especially since the Australian superstar was on cruise control in the first two rounds until he hit Fundora's elbow and left him with a deep cut to the head.
Blood gushed from the cut, seriously impacting Tszyu, who was struggling to see Fundora's shot coming towards him.
A clearly emotional Tszyu revealed: main event Ben Damon was backstage with blood running down his face and dripping into his eyes “for the entire match” and couldn't see “anything”.
The cut was so bad that Tszyu initially felt that the fight would be called off immediately after he accidentally opened his mouth.
“I thought, 'There's no way they can continue,'” Tszyu said.
“I haven't really seen the replay yet, so I'm curious to know how big it actually was and how much blood was spilled.”
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But when asked if he thought the fight needed to stop, Tszyu shook his head.
“No, no,” Tsi said.
“Everything was working on instinct. I saw his shots and was eliminating them all.
“He was getting me with a few jabs and a few crosses, but nothing could hinder me.”
There was much disagreement over who won this back-and-forth match, with one judge ruling in Tszyu's favor.
Even Tszyu's trainer, Igor Golubev, could not safely say who would win.
“You never really know when the fight is over every 12 rounds,” Tszyu said.
“I ask Igor, 'Did we win?' And he said to me, 'It could have gone either way.'
“Obviously, I was landing crisper shots, but he was landing more punches.”
Later, Tszyu got a little emotional when Damon congratulated him on his performance.
“You can't congratulate me just because I lost,” Tszyu said.
“I'm not happy if I don't win. And I'm pretty devastated. That's the reality.”
Brutal judge's sentence ends Tszyu | 01:25
Tse's debacle comes after former world champion Andre Ward revealed he was “very surprised” the Australian refrained from using his trademark body shots against Fundora.
Given Fundora's lanky 197cm frame, many encouraged Tszyu to actively work on the American's large torso.
However, Fundora's attack on the abdomen almost never materialized for Tszyu, but criticism on that front would be harsh given the loss of vision caused by the blood.
In any case, Ward felt that if Tse had thrown more body shots, it certainly could have made things “much easier for me.”
“I was very surprised (Tszyu didn't attack the body),” Ward said. main event coverage.
“He would actually be in position and get close to Sebastian and throw a big left hook, but he wasn't going to throw it.
Bloodbath Madness! The battle goes crazy | 01:48
“I don't know if it was because of the blood, I don't know if he didn't have confidence in it. But he just couldn't seem to resist the desire to go all the way to the head.
“I don't know if it was because of his height, I don't know if he overestimated his last fight with Sebastian Fundora and decided he didn't have the chin anymore, but I don't know. .
“But I think he could have made the fight a lot easier.”
Tse faced criticism from Ward, but former world champion Fundora praised him for moving away from his all-action aggressive display and finally capitalizing on his 203cm reach advantage.
“I have to give credit to Sebastián Fundora, because all week I never expected or saw him fight as disciplined at distance as he did tonight. Because of that,” Ward said.
“I thought the knockout would bother him, but I didn't see any ill effects of it and I saw him put in a disciplined fight tonight.”
Rogue Elbow that changed the fight | 01:13
