Nikita Tszyu has shown off his boxing pedigree by extending his unbeaten run with a crushing first-round victory over Benjamin Bommber.
Squaring off as the co-main event at Melbourne’s Margaret Court Arena on Wednesday night, Tszyu landed a big uppercut and then finished the young Victorian with a flurry of punches.
The referee tried to intervene with Bommber landing on the canvas on top of him.
Tszyu is the son of former great Kostya, and younger brother of Tim, who was ringside and looked as excited as his sibling by the dominant victory.
The win came 20 years after triple world champion Kostya downed American Jesse James Leija in six rounds in Melbourne.
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Nikita, 25, is undefeated through six professional fights while Bommber was 5-0 heading into this clash.
He lived up to his nickname “The Butcher” with the ruthless performance.
“It was over in a flash, I was hoping it was going to go a little longer,” Nikita said.
“I landed an uppercut. I saw a victim, the hunter instinct inside of me went into kill mode.
“If I see someone wounded, I want to hurt them, it’s just instincts.”
Tim joined Nikita in the ring and rated his display as “10/10”.
“I’m a proud brother. Nikita did a tremendous job,” Tim said.
“My dad fought here in the Telstra Dome in Melbourne in 2003 so for Nikita to come back 20 years later and continue the legacy here, it’s an honour for us and I’m sure one day I’ll be back as well.”
Post-fight Nikita said the victory had given him a “huge buzz”.
“That was unexpected. I didn’t expect it to be that short,” he said.
“He (Bommber) was a little bit tricky at first but he opened himself up a little bit and that upper-cut is something I’ve been working on throughout camp.”
Bommber, 21, went into the fight with high expectations after calling out Tszyu for the past year.
He spent the build-up training in Las Vegas with respected American trainer Rodney Crisler, who arrived in Melbourne after helping Devin Haney retain his belts.
But he failed to make weight at the first attempt which led Tszyu to describe him as unprofessional.
“It was a sweet feeling – he was definitely gutted as it’s a tough loss for him to have early in his career.
“I said at the first press conference that one of us is moving forward and one isn’t and that’s the harsh reality of the sport.”
Meanwhile, in a clash of former AFL heavyweights, ex-Bomber Tom Bellchambers dominated Cameron Mooney, who played for Geelong.
The super welterweight pair both landed some heavy blows in the opening round with Bellchambers knocking the big Cat down.
He then landed a big right with 47 seconds remaining in the third and final round, winning by knockout.
-AAP
