NEWS: TIM TSZYU FEELING 'NO PRESSURE' HEADING INTO JERMELL CHARLO ENCOUNTER

By: Jay Calderon

Australia's Tim Tszyu, the son of Hall of Fame former world champion Kostya Tszyu, is just over a month away from the biggest moment of his still-young career.

On January 28, the undefeated Tszyu will take on pound-for-pound, unified Jr. Middleweight world champion Jermell Charlo, live on Showtime, in what could be one of 2023's early Fight of the Year candidates.

However, if you ask the hard-hitting Aussie, there isn't any pressure on his shoulders. Having already arrived in the United States to continue his preparation for the Las Vegas showdown, Tszyu feels Charlo's pre-fight trash talk has mounted the pressure on the American's side.

"There's nothing to lose for me," Tszyu told Fox Sports. "I've got no pressure. The pressure's on him. He's the one putting pressure on himself."

During the build-up to this encounter, Charlo has promised to knock out the unbeaten Aussie and claims Tszyu is simply not on his level. Naturally, Tim hasn't agreed. Still, Tszyu also said that while the pair will likely "never be mates", he admitted to having a "certain respect for [Charlo] as a fighter".

To be fair, I see no issue with either approach in regards to their pre-contest back and forths. If there's one guy in the sport that deserves to talk that talk, it's a guy like Charlo. He's faced just about everyone there is to face at 154 pounds, taken his losses like a man, and has ultimately come out on top.

Meanwhile, I definitely see why Tszyu wants to remain focused and not engage in the back and forths. At 28 years of age, this is definitely the biggest fight of his young career. Keeping his head down and staying focused might be his best bet for success come the new year.

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