Tim Tszyu calls Tony Harrison ‘fragile’ after he whinged about flying to Australia for boxing bout

Aussie boxer Tim Tszyu has slammed American Tony Harrison as ‘fragile’ and says he could ‘crack him in half’, after the pair had their first face-to-face meeting ahead of their world title fight.

Harrison touched down in Sydney earlier before he and Tszyu faced off for the first time on the red carpet at the premiere of Creed III.

The pair will meet in the ring at Qudos Bank Arena on March 12 for the interim WBO super-welterweight belt.

They shared a warm embrace before a stony pose in front of the cameras, with Tszyu warning the 32-year-old Harrison (29-3-1, 21KO) the time for niceness was over.

‘He looks fragile,’ Tszyu said. ‘I’ve been sparring big strong, unbreakable blokes and he looks like I could crack him in half.’

Tim Tszyu (left) has slammed American Tony Harrison (right) as ‘fragile’ and says he could ‘crack him in half’, after the pair had their first face-to-face meeting ahead of their world title fight

Harrison touched down in Sydney earlier before he and Tszyu faced off for the first time on the red carpet at the premiere of Creed III

‘If it goes past four (rounds) he’ll be in trouble.

‘My aim is to grab him by the neck and pull him down into the ocean and let him sink.

‘That’ll start from round one and we’ll see when he wants to get air, because he won’t get any air.’

Harrison appears to be in good shape for the bout, despite complaining about an exhausting trip to get Down Under.

‘It was tough, man. It was a tough flight. We had to pull over, catch a camel, catch a go-kart, get on a bike,’ the Detriot-based Harrison said when he got off the plane.

The winner of their bout is likely to meet undisputed world champion Jermell Charlo, who was forced to pull out of a January fight with Tszyu due to a hand injury.

The fight with Harrison represents a risk to Tszyu’s hopes of taking on Charlo and unifying the division, but the 28-year-old said next month’s meeting was arguably a greater test.

‘He (Harrison) is from the Kronk Gym, he’s got a good jab and movement,’ Tszyu said.

‘He’s slick and hard to hit, it’s a different type of opponent to one I’ve ever faced. I’m not underestimating him, this is going to be a tough fight.

The winner of their bout is likely to meet undisputed world champion Jermell Charlo, who was forced to pull out of a January fight with Tszyu due to a hand injury

Harrison promised to be in tip-top shape for Tszyu come fight time at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena and believes the Aussie has bitten off more than he can chew

‘He’s got better skills than Charlo, he beat Charlo (in 2019 on unanimous decision).

‘Styles make fights but just because you’ve got better skills doesn’t mean you’re going to win all the time.

‘The bigger the risk, the bigger the reward, aim for the stars.’

Despite his exhaustion, Harrison promised to be in tip-top shape for Tszyu come fight time at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena and believes the Aussie has bitten off more than he can chew.

‘I feel amazing. Tim caught me at the right time – wrong time for him, right time for me,’ he said yesterday.

‘For Tim, he knows I’m a step too far.’