Nikita Tszyu faces Ben Mahoney in an IBF super welterweight title eliminator on Wednesday, August 26, at the GCCEC on the Gold Coast, Australia. Tickets are on sale via Ticketmaster.
- Sydney’s 28-year-old southpaw Tszyu (12-0, 10 KOs) comes off a sixth-round stoppage victory over Oscar Diaz in May.
- Gold Coast’s 31-year-old Mahoney (17-0-1, 9 KOs) won his previous bout in April by unanimous decision against Dan Hill.
Tszyu is currently ranked No. 7 by the IBF, while Mahoney is No. 9.
‘The Gold Coast is an awesome place to fight’
“This is the biggest fight of my career and there’s a world title shot on the line,” Tszyu said.
“Ben Mahoney is probably the most technical fighter I’ve ever had to face, and I’ve always viewed him as the guy I need to beat to get to the world stage. He’s going to be hard, and I have to be really prepared for it.”
“Look, he’s a nice guy. But it won’t mean anything on fight night. I flick the switch and he’s standing in the way of everything I’ve worked so hard for.”
“The Gold Coast is an awesome place to fight and I can’t wait for August 26.”
“I’m actually excited to be heading to his hometown. His fans are going to be loud and show up in numbers, and my fans are going to show up. The energy in that arena is going to be electric. Fighters feed off that energy, so you do not want to miss it.”
The bouts featured on the undercard are expected to be announced shortly.
The event will be broadcast on Main Event and Kayo Sports in Australia.
- Britain’s Josh Kelly (19-1-1, 9 KOs) is the reigning IBF champion at 154 lbs, while Dallas, Texas’ Vergil Ortiz Jr. (24-0, 22 KOs) holds the organization’s interim belt.