BRISBANE, Australia – Michael Zerafa quit, and for all his protestations at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, he didn’t remotely convince.
What after two rounds with Nikita Tszyu had promised to be an entertaining contest instead ultimately became farcical. BoxingScene had thought it unnecessary that the ringside doctor had sought to inspect the minimal damage to his eye; it then seemed almost unthinkable that he was suggesting that he couldn’t see out of it and, at the conclusion of an evening with countless – on this occasion justifiable – recriminations, it would be naive to suggest anything other than that he wanted out.
Zerafa had seemed untroubled when his response to the doctor meant he was told that the fight wouldn’t continue. After a period of reflection, he then started to protest – and did so excessively – and it shouldn’t be overlooked that when he was protesting it was far too late.
He, similarly, attempted to leave the ring before giving a post-fight interview. Main Event’s Ben Damon then provided the most admirable of demonstrations of how to handle such circumstances when, unlike so many in his position past and present, he recognised that the story was about the fight and the fighters, and not him. Instead of offering his opinion he asked Zerafa more than once if he had told the doctor that he couldn’t see; Zerafa’s unconvincing answers were then left for the viewers and those present to judge for themselves; there was certainly no point at which Damon appeared to attempt to be the fighter’s friend.
That Zerafa didn’t attend a post-fight press conference contributed to the suspicion that he had something to hide. His former manager Mike Altamura – in 2026 an influential figure in the team leading Tim Tszyu – also believed that he could have fought on.
“I’m really disappointed, especially because I thought from a skill and technical standpoint he turned up,” Altamura told BoxingScene. “He was finding his range early, even though he’s always struggled against left-handers with his positioning. Nikita clearly won the second round and finished strong, but I was looking forward to seeing how it was going to warm up.
“Mick’s so much better than that as fighter, as a ring warrior, and that’s why it’s disappointing. This is one of those nights – he’s going to look at it at the end of his career and say, ‘I maybe could have braved through that.’
“I’m not going to use the word ‘quit’, but I believe he could have continued. Fighters by trade are supposed to mask pain and mask when they’re in danger. You get a magnificent win you’re probably gonna get a world-title shot. To allow that to fall away, I don’t know what he’s thinking on the other side of it. There might be something there with his vision that none of us can see – maybe a scratched eyeball or something – but I’m clutching at straws even saying that stuff.
“If you look at Tim, his thoughts are a lot more emotional and frustrated and disappointed, for his brother. He feels Michael quit. He said it straight out: ‘He doesn’t deserve to be on this platform.’ That’s what he said, and he feels strong about that.”
It by then had come as little surprise to learn that the ringside commentators and former world champions Paulie Malignaggi and Shawn Porter had also accused Zerafa of “quitting”. It had already pained BoxingScene to see Malignaggi around the build-up to Friday’s fight and to observe that the grotesque cuts he suffered in his bareknuckle contest in 2025 were continuing to heal.
By the time Tszyu and Zerafa made their way to the ring, there had regardless unfolded plenty that had been worthy of attention.
Tim Tszyu’s presence had been expected but less so was him being interviewed with his recently dismissed manager Glenn Jennings and trainer Igor Goloubev – also his uncle – in the background in his brother’s dressing room while that interview unfolded on screen.
In a reflection of the popularity of boxing and other sports to the Australian public, the former AFL professional Jonathan Brown joined Malignaggi and Porter on Main Event’s screens. Brown was almost certainly recruited to attract a bigger audience in Melbourne, where AFL is so popular (interest in sports in Australia is often regional), and to help Tszyu-Zerafa to “cross over” to those requiring convincing of its appeal.
Among those BoxingScene had spoken to, pre-fight, was Jeremy Latimore, matched with Nelson Asofa-Solomona on the occasion of the NRL convert’s professional debut. Latimore had spoken with confidence of his chances of succeeding but by the time he made his way to the ring had the unsettling air of a fighter who no longer believed that he could win. Latimore’s body language and facial expressions suggested that he finally recognised that he had been matched with Asofa-Solomona to lose and of the unenviable size of the challenge he was confronting. Asofa-Solomona then made his way to the ring with a sense of ease that belied the pressure he was under given the attention he has attracted. He is an understated individual but appeared a natural showman; there’s also little question that he cut an intimidating figure from the moment he appeared.
That Latimore is also a successful former NRL professional made the conclusion to their fight difficult to witness. Asofa-Solomona, with the best intentions, called for applause for his efforts and applause followed him doing so. Latimore, however, looked hurt at having lost and like the applause offered little consolation, and to the extent that Floyd Mayweather attempting to compliment the heartbroken Ricky Hatton after Hatton’s first defeat in 2007 was unexpectedly then brought to mind.
Peter Badel, a rugby league journalist, was also on the Main Event panel. If his presence seemed unusual it potentially provided an insight into promoters No Limit’s plans around Asofa-Solomona – George Burgess, another former NRL professional, was present and seen interacting with Asofa-Solomona. Burgess is the brother of the former England rugby union international Sam, once the world’s finest rugby league players, and the expectation is that the day will come when they will fight. A further reflection of the New Zealander Asofa-Solomona’s profile in Australia then came when he, unlike the victorious Liam Wilson – an Australian former world-title challenger and active world-title contender – staged a press conference, post-fight.
Above all else, it is difficult to see how Zerafa – who has had a fine career – can recover from the damage to his reputation. “She’ll be right” is an expression used in the particularly machismo culture of Australia, typically when men are attempting to justify resisting seeking treatment for something that requires medical care.
In front of a significant audience on a pay-per-view platform Zerafa chose not to continue when everything suggested he could have. Fighters with truly threatening injuries have harshly – and unfairly – not been forgiven by audiences for “quitting”. Zerafa – particularly if No Limit and Main Event understandably decide that they no longer want to invest in him – may find that there is simply no way back.
