"Beterbiev and Bivol are real men! Honest and decent"

On July 19, Russian-Australian boxer Tim Tszyu will have a rematch against Sebastian Fundora — Tim lost the first fight by split decision. Izvestia and Sport-Express talked about this and many other things with Tim's father, former absolute world champion Konstantin Tszyu. In the interview, Tszyu Sr. also talked about Tim's willingness to fight Terrence Crawford, the third fight between Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev, as well as the difference between Australia and Russia.

"Tim doesn't want me to come to the fight? This is complete nonsense"

— Tim Tszyu will meet with Sebastian Fundora on July 19. What changes do you expect from the rematch compared to the first fight?

— I hope there will be less blood. I don't want to justify my son's loss just because of the dissection, but it was of the greatest importance. This cannot be explained to people who have not received such cuts, who have not bled in front of their eyes. You can't see anything — blood has such a property that it completely closes your eyes. You're blind in one eye, and he's got one eye, then the other. He was constantly restricted in certain actions, he could not concentrate clearly. Again, this is not an excuse, but I hope that this fight will be injury-free.

— Tim talked about feeling unwell the day before the fight with Fundora. He said that his stomach had pulled in, that he felt terrible, like a zombie.

— He didn't tell me about it, and he did the right thing. It's a definite lesson to my son that you can't go into the ring not 100% ready.

— Bahram Murtazaliev criticized Fundoru for taking the fight with Tim, and not with him. He said that Fundora would win, but this is primarily not a sport, but a business. Do you think Bahram has any reason to say that?

— On the one hand, yes. On the other hand, maybe they had some verbal agreements that there would be a rematch.

— You were not present at the match against Spencer, as Tim asked you to...

— It's not that I asked, I just didn't plan to go there.

— He was just saying that it was unusual for him when you were in fights.

— I talked to him. This is complete nonsense, which came from some correspondent. Completely untrue.

— Will you be present at the duel with Fundora?

— No, I won't. On July 19th, I will be in another place.

— But in general, your participation in Tim's training camps is not excluded?

- of course. I told him that at any moment he would say to me, "Dad, I need you," and I would be there. At the moment, I fully trust his coach. We have moments not of arguments or disagreements, but of discussing some issues.

— Is your father Boris Timofeevich currently involved in Tim's training?

— In all the photos that I see on Instagram (the social network belongs to the Meta corporation, which is recognized as extremist and banned in the Russian Federation), Dad is always next to me. Therefore, yes, he is nearby. It's harder for him to travel now, to fly far away, but in Sydney he's close by.

"Bivol cannot be defeated now, any opponent will be broken"

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— And what is his main function in the training camp?

— Be close. The same function that was his responsibility in a certain way when he was in my camp.

"The best fight possible at the moment"

— Bivol's third fight with Beterbiev is just around the corner. Dmitry gave up the WBC belt for this fight, thereby losing his status as the absolute world champion. What do you think about this decision?

— I think they made the right decision — to make the best fight possible at the moment. They have an unfinished story, and they want to put an end to it. Benavidez is next. He is much stronger and even more physically powerful than Beterbiev, he has hunger. The guys had these two fights and spent a lot of mental energy.

— Do you think if Artur was in such a situation, would he give up the belt for a rematch with Bivol?

"I think he would have done the same." Do you know why? Because he's a real man. And Bivol too. They are real, honest, decent people, so this is of great importance to them.

— You commented on the second fight, and then Beterbiev's fans were unhappy with the way you see the fight. Will you comment on the third fight?

— I don't know, I haven't decided yet. You know, when you're being taught by amateurs, what should you say? Apologize to them? I saw the fight the way I saw it. I'm not going to apologize to anyone. I'm not a judge, but I've been in this damn business for 45 years. I know a lot about refereeing, too. It was completely unbiased. I have a good relationship with both Dima and Beterbiev. I respect them both. I have been waiting for more than 20 years for what they have done. This is the moment when one of our guys can become an absolute.

— Has there been a specific proposal to comment on the third fight yet?

- no. When is the fight scheduled? In December? We'll see, depending on the numbers. If I'm not invited, I'm cool with it. If invited, we will discuss it.

— And in general, were you disappointed in the commentary work?

— Why should I be disappointed? Some fans were disappointed... I expressed my point of view and I think I was speaking neutrally, I wasn't trying to put one of the guys as a favorite.

— I meant that disappointment can come from people's reactions.

— I've reached a point in my life where I don't pay attention to anyone at all. I live in balance with myself, my moral principles are important to me. If someone doesn't understand this, I'm not going to explain or prove anything. If I get invited on TV itself, it means they think I'm doing everything right. Who was there with me? Sasha (commentator Alexander Sadokov. — Ed.)? And how was he [criticized]? And Dmitry Pirog... We've all been attacked!

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In the last match, the legendary Russian boxer won a landslide victory over Arthur Mann.

— It was said about Pirog that he has an adequate point of view.

— So his point of view is the same as mine.

— In terms of the winner, yes, but you counted differently.

— Well, what's the difference?

— There is a difference for the fans.

— These are emotions, you're rooting for your own. There are a lot of guys, Chechens, Dagestanis, who supported only Beterbiev. I tried to judge this fight neutrally, without likes or dislikes.

— Another possible fight is Terrence Crawford vs. Canelo. If the fight takes place, how do you see it?

— How much Canelo ate... And he's already had enough, he's had a lot of great fights. Will Crawford be able to get up? At 76 kg, who has the physical advantage? Canelo. For Crawford to rise from 63 to 76 kg is decent.

— How many years does Tim need to grow up to fight Crawford?

— Tim is ready even now. I'm sure he's ready for anyone.

"I've never eaten better meat anywhere than in Australia"

— Since you have lived in Australia for many years, I would like to ask you a question: where, in your opinion, is the level of medicine higher? If we compare that Australia and the current Russia.

— The treatment is different everywhere. I am very pleased with what is happening in Russia. I've had a lot of major repairs done over the last few years. Someone is hating our medicine, but we have excellent doctors. We don't have a complete system, maybe. It's very comfortable, very convenient, and everything is connected correctly. There is state treatment in Australia, which is far from the best compared to Russian treatment. Paid medicine in Australia is very good. I am currently being treated in a public hospital, and they treated me like an ordinary person in an ordinary ward. We have very good medicine, both free and paid.

— And if you compare the food culture, where do you like restaurants more?

— You should come to my restaurant, then you will find out where the best food is. (Laughs.) In general, I'm in good athletic shape, I adhere to proper nutrition, I don't eat any filth at all, fried. Apart from water, I drink practically nothing, no carbonated or sweet drinks. I really like meat, steaks are good — unfortunately, I have never seen a steak like this where I would say, "Wow! It's great." I have Asian cuisine in my restaurant — the best rolls and sushi I've ever seen in Australia. But I've never eaten better meat than in Australia.

— What of what you have in Australia would you like to bring to Russia? To have it here.

— If I had been asked this question 20 years ago, I would have said people, the attitude of people towards others. Things have changed a bit now, and people in Australia have become angrier. The kindness that was there before is gone.

— And what do you associate it with?

— A large number of migrations. People have become angry, they have arrived, and nothing is working. They expected gold, but they got olive oil. And this dissatisfaction is transferred to others. You used to walk around the neighborhood, and people greeted you.: good morning. Especially the first times I brought my parents to Australia. I greet them, and they say, "Who is this?" I say, "I don't know." "Why are you greeting him?" my parents ask me. I say, "Well, I wished the person a good morning, that's okay." "No, it's not normal, you don't know him." I say, "So he doesn't know me either."

You can walk around your neighborhood and greet people, wish them a good morning, and this is a normal phenomenon! It's okay when you're standing, they can come up to you and help you with something. There is such a thing here too. Maybe it's because I'm recognized, but what's happening in Russia has changed a lot for the better. In Australia, unfortunately, for the worse.

— Are you more often recognized in Russia than in Australia?

— No, I can't go anywhere. I hide my pigtail [under my cap], put on my glasses and walk that way.

— Do you remember the case in Australia when someone helped you on the street?

— About 25 years ago, I got lost in some area, then there were no navigation systems. The car is moving, I wave my hand, it stops: Hi, mate! How you doing? ("Hey, buddy. How are you?" — Translated from English). I say: "Yes, I got lost." He starts showing me where to go, and then says, "Okay, let me show you now." He was driving in the other direction, turns around and takes me there. He doesn't know me, he just realized that I needed help, and he helped me.