It had been a long wait for Kostya Tszyu fans for his first bout since starching Zab Judah! I had predicted a 10th round knockout for Tszyu and a performance reminiscent of his power boxing display against Miguel Angel Gonzalez in 1999. Instead we witnessed a boxing clinic brought about by Tszyu's desire to make a point to his American critics. This proved unfortunate for Kostya's legions of true fans who were hoping for more big punches, a knockdown or two, a stoppage or generally just a more exciting bout. Kostya put this performance on for his American critics, to prove a point and to give himself some satisfaction. I do believe the same type critics will now criticize him for a lackluster performance.

I was not feeling the usual high I get from watching a Kostya Tszyu bout but I am pleased in a way that Kostya fought this style of fight. Let no critic say Kostya is one dimensional or that he can't fight moving backwards. The American critics and experts love their dancers, movers and runners like Sugar Ray Leonard and others. How many fighters do you see can out box their opponents with a shorter height and reach whilst still staying within range to deliver accurate counter punches? Nor did Tszyu run away or clinch (well not very often). The only other person I have seen recently who fought a similar style of fight was Bernard Hopkins in his victory bout over Felix Trinidad.

Kostya Tszyu gave everyone a display of his exceptional boxing capabilities, especially defensive skills mostly his head movement slipping Tackie's jab ever so slightly that I'm sure a lot of people did not even notice it. Tszyu must have hit Tackie with harder shots than I thought because Tackie was very reluctant to come out of his very effective high guard to attack Kostya. It certainly wasn't the Tackie who went all out attacking against Roberto Garcia and Ray Oliveira so there must have been a bit more weight and sting to those jabs and straight right hand arm punches Tszyu was throwing. It appeared clear to me that Kostya did not want to stop Tackie by the 5th round as he was not turning up the intensity of his attack nor was he throwing many body shots. Tackie was hit with some good clean body shots but nowhere near enough.

I have read some comments stating that less than 2,900 people attended this fight and that Tszyu is not a draw card. Well, if he is not appreciated in the U.S.A. then it is time to bring his fights back home to Australia. Tszyu has built his reputation by fighting his last 8 or 9 in the U.S.A. and won all of his titles on foreign soil with odds stacked against him. He is viewed as a boxing legend in Australia.

I don't think we will see Kostya in action again until November or December and the sanctioning bodies should let him have a voluntary defense of his titles. Micky Ward beat Arturo Gatti yesterday and in my opinion has earned the right to meet Tszyu next. It would be fitting if such a fight could be held in Sydney or Melbourne where I think Tszyu would draw a crowd of 30,000 to 50,000 in the right outdoor arena (Take note Frank Warren). If Ward can't come to the party then Ricky Hatton. Kostya's loyal Australian fans deserve to see him fight at home against a good entertaining opponent. The sanctioning bodies should give him a break like they have done for Roy Jones Jr. It won't make any difference with the fight taking place in Australia as promoters here have catered for the American market before by staging bouts in mid afternoon so they can be seen at prime time in the U.S.A.

I have yet to see the Ward-Gatti bout but from all reports it sounds like the best fight since Benn-McClelland, (to not recognize such a great bout due to the tragic ending would be an injustice), and I'm sure anyone who watched both fights would have preferred Ward-Gatti.

The fans should demand this match up and should not have to put up with these unreasonable demands from the likes of Zab Judah and Vince Phillips wanting a rematch with Tszyu. What has either one of these men done to deserve a rematch? Tszyu doesn't want to fight them which is good as why should bad behaviour (Judah) and average recent performance (Phillips) be rewarded with a title shot. As far as I'm concerned the three most deserving contenders for Tszyu in order are: