Why did Tszyu retire after Hatton?

In a radio interview over in Australia it's true that they tried to make the Mayweather fight but that the difficulty between Showtime and HBO stopped the bout from happening. Neither fighter ducked each other. A fight with Gatti was rejected by Gatti's management, Harris couldn't bring in enough money and Hatton became the only choice.

Despite his trainer publicly stating Tszyu should retire (after Mitchell 2) ... Tszyu signed on for two more fights with Showtime.

He fought Hatton, gassed in five rounds...threw one of the lowest right hand percentages of his professional fights in years ...and in my opinion...showed all the injuries, struggles to make weight (spent the week leading up to weigh ins in a sweat suit and still failed to make weight on the first attempt)...and lack of fights that he needed to stay on top (three rounds in three years ain't enough).

Still a good performance, I thought the middle rounds he was beating Hatton purely with his left. But as George Foreman said about the fight 'He wants to throw the right...but the body isn't letting him. That's what happens when you get old.'

Sam Soliman, one of his sparring partners also said 'I've sparred with him in preparation for lots of his fights. But the desire wasn't there anymore and i saw an old fighter get into the ring.'

Tszyu actually had one fight on his contract left which I believe he had to pay out to cancel. If he could have got up even for a finale...he would have. But he didn't have anything left. 35 year old fighters who retire straight after a bout can rarely be considered 'prime'. I remember watching the fight thinking 'The poor guy is done. Why the hell isn't he throwing his right?'

Funnily enough, his trainer kept yelling the same thing in the corner 'Stiff jab Kos! Throw more rights!'. Didn't look like he wanted to be there in the later rounds. And having watched nearly every fight of Tszyu's....he looked a shadow of his former self to me.

Then again, I'm of the opinion that Morales was shot for Pac 2 and 3 as well. So who knows? Just opinions.

 

Did you watch the fight? He was slower and trigger shy right from the very beginning.

 

Excellent post by gatorage, great read man. Another thing to consider is Kostya had an extensive amateur career spanning hundreds of fights. Such prolonged amateur careers are an incredible learning experience for a fighter, but hundreds of rounds add up. It's perfectly understandable how with so many fights and after the injuries, he was an old 35.

One of my favorite fighters ever, just wish I had gotten into the game a few years earlier so I could have seen more of his prime.

 

I came out of that Hatton-Tszyu fight, with a newfound respect for Tszyu I did'nt have before then.

When the commentating crew asked him post fight and insinuated to Tszyu that the fight rested in the balance heading into the final round......

.....Tszyu stopped it in its tracks right there.......without as so much blinking, Tszyu told the commentator something to the effect, "I wont kid myself. I know where I was in the fight. Hatton deserves his respect."

.....Tszyu was insinuating that he was'nt going to let a blind media tell him he was in the fight, when he knew damn well he was behind and out of steam heading into the last round.

Its refreshing to hear the truth come out of the mouth of a great champion, when most try to rationalize and make all kinds of excuses for the reasons he was put in such predicament.


Kostya Tszyu retired because he found out sometime during the Hatton fight that there was fresh blood in the division that he'd likely have a hard time competing with.
He went home to his family and prevented being a stepping stone to the new fighters coming in.
We should congratulate him for doing so!

 

I don't think that Kostya was past it at all. Hatton just fought the perfect type of fight to beat him. I ALWAYS wanted to see Mayweather vs Tszyu. I always had a pretty big feeling that KT would have beat him. Of all of the trash talking that Mayweather has done, he ALWAYS said great things about Tszyu.

 

He got beaten up pretty badly by Hatton and Dave Parris that night - that fight still leaves a bad taste in my mouth even after 4 years...

I think Tszyu did pretty well considering his inactivity in the 2 years prior to the fight, and the fact that Hatton was given free reign to foul and hold as much as he wanted to, while Tszyu was just about getting pinged by the ref every time he showed aggression.

Parris never scored the KD for Tszyu, and never penalised Hatton for his deliberate lowblow - Tszyu was definitely fighting 2 opponents that night, and still managed to retire on his stool with dignity.

I always thought a rematch on neutral soil or officiated by a ref other than Mickey Vann or Dave Parris would have been a UD win for Tszyu.

 

That's true. But the number of fans picking Hatton in that fight was VERY small. I know, I was one of 'em.

At the time, most people thought he would easily beat Hatton. I was one of the few who argued that age and inactivity would catch up to him in that fight. It's interesting how perceptions change in a few years!

 

Totally agree IrnBruMan. Well written - Top Post! Everything was against Kostya that night including the 2am fight time.

Hatton's style to hit and then hold for 5 seconds was so boring but he was allowed to get away with it. It was only in his most recent fight against Malignaggi that I finally gave him some respect. I do appreciate however his heart and balls and willingness to fight - just never liked his style. However tactically he did the right thing to Kostya and others who on paper were superior boxers.....except Floyd (who wasn't 35).

 

It's the anxiety and frustration . . . he was confused. His family was urging him to retire.

 

WTF? At damn near age 36 and at 140 pounds, that's considered old for his weight class....... Kostya Tszyu was NOT an overly active fighter his last few years in the ring, but he was past his best days without a doubt..... His retirement is / was a smart move..... Who wants to see Kostya Tszyu end up like J.C. Chavez and carry onward fighting and losing to mediocre guys?? NOBODY!! Hopefully K.T. has invested and handled his money much better than other fighters have past or present...... Cheerio...

MR.BILL:bbb

 

Kostya Tszyu probably only grossed 10 to 15 million dollars overall over his entire career, however, if he planned ahead and was smart about it, he should be set for life.... Cheers....

MR.BILL

 

Tszyu lives comfortably. Last reports suggest he drives a Bentley, has his sister living in a nice house, purchased a home for his parents... lives in a nice home with his wife and kids. He does appear on Australian tv once in a while, 'Dancing with the Stars' etc...

If you guys have the chance, take a look at Tszyu at the weigh in of the Hatton fight... looking sickly. He fought 5 times in his last 5 years..... A good testimony is the fact he lasted the 11 rounds with Hatton. He never complained about any incidents in that fight, and offered Hatton as much advice as he would ask in the future.

In a way, that fight was a sensational send off for Tszyu, and a great introduction for Hatton to the world. I personally had discredited Hatton as being a KO king who handed out beatings to Baltic and Eastern Block Taxi Drivers...

He proved his worth that night.

 

I dont know about the sickly part, but great post nonetheless!

Imo Tszyu was in great shape, but Hatton was just the younger, fresher, hungrier, fighter that night.

Hatton took Tszyu to quarters he was unaccustomed to that night (the inside)....and a played a huge part in wearing Tszyu down.

The Tszyu supporters dont like to give Hatton credit for the job he did....but apparently Tszyu gives Hatton much more credit than his supporters do......he's never had a bad word to say about Hatton, and the fact that he picked Hatton to beat Mayweather Jr......goes to show what Tszyu thinks of Hatton as a fighter.

 

Usually loudmouths like Mayweather say nice things about fighters they have a good feeling about beating, and badmouth fighters they think can trouble them.

 

kt was one lean mean fighting machine. described as a little tyson in his heyday. he was getting old and with his fighting style, at 35, his body would have been battered already.