Nikita Tszyu keen to show improvements against Koen Mazoudier

The youngest member of Australia’s boxing royal family is set for the toughest test of his young career.

Junior middleweight prospect Nikita Tszyu takes on Koen Mazoudier this Wednesday at the ICC Sydney Theatre in Sydney. It will headline a domestic pay-per-view show on Main Event promoted by No Limit Boxing.

Tszyu (9-0, 7 knockouts), a 26-year-old southpaw, has quickly become a fan favorite in his homeland. He has earned a reputation as a brawler, as reflected his ‘The Butcher’ ring moniker. ‘

He will need to be on his game to defeat Mazoudier (12-3-1, 5 KOs). The 28-year-old is a quality operator who has been stopped just once—by Wade Ryan in the 10th and final round in March 2021. In November of the following year, Mazoudier reversed the result in their rematch with an eight-round unanimous decision win. He also holds a pair of wins over the tough Joel Camilleri.

Tszyu is the younger brother of ex-154-pound titleholder Tim Tszyu (24-1, 17 KOs). Their father, Kostya is a Hall of Fame former RING champion. With boxing in his blood, the youngest Tszyu insists he is ready for anything Mazoudier brings to the table.

“I’m expecting him to do a little bit of everything,” Tszyu said during a recent media scrum. “To be on the back foot, to be coming forward at times, and for these transitions to be quite explosive.

“But you can just come out of nowhere and just start going forward, or you can just go start going backwards. I’m just prepared for two different types of Koen’s.”

The show will also feature an intriguing light heavyweight contest between Conor Wallace (13-1, 10 KOs) and Jerome Pampellone (18-1, 11 KOs).

If there is one criticism of Tszyu, it’s that his relentless aggression can leave him defensively liable. He was rocked in his last bout by Danilo Creati, an Italian-born Australian with just one knockout.

Shoring up his defense while maintaining his pressure style was a focal point in camp. His team, led by head coach Igor Goloubev, has touched on all areas to prepare for the task at hand.

“My final sparring was last week and now I’ve tapered off,” said Tszyu. “I’ve personally felt a huge shift. But I felt the shift in my progressions when I was here back in Sydney. The stuff that I was doing there was just kind of adding to it. It’s proof that I’m progressing, that I’m on a nice steady incline.”

Asked whether he had been sparring his brother in preparation for Mazoudier, Tszyu laughed.

“No, not this time around,” he said. “He’s not sparring a southpaw and I don’t have a death wish.

“I actually enjoy having Tim around. Whenever the cameras are out, they’re focused on him. I can kind of chill out. So he takes the heavy lifting.”

Tszyu’s older brother is in negotiations to challenge IBF junior middleweight Bakhram Murtazaliev (22-0, 16 KOs). The Russian won the vacant strap with an 11th round knockout of Jack Culcay in Germany in April.

“It’s great that he’s still in that same position, that he kind of deserves that elite world ranked fighter,” said Tszyu. “I think it’s going to be a great fight. He gets [the chance to win] another title, becomes a two-time world champ. He’s got a very tricky opponent.”

The Tszyu-Mazoudier pay-per-view, available through Foxtel and Kayo, will set back punters $69.95.

“I’m just getting used to it (headlining), it’s probably like second nature to me,” said Tszyu. “Learning that it’s part of the business and try and be entertaining for the public.”

Australian-based boxing journalist Anthony Cocks has been covering the sport for over 20 years for various print and online publications. Follow him on X.