WBO junior middleweight world champion Tim Tszyu will make the first defense of his world title when he battles streaking top contender Brian Mendoza on Saturday, October 14 (Sunday, October 15 in Australia) from the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia.

Showtime will broadcast the fight. The co-feature will have Australia’s rising contender Sam Goodman squaring off against former world title challenger Miguel Flores in a featherweight bout.

The 28-year-old Tszyu (23-0, 17 KOs) will look to continue his red-hot 2023 that began with him stopping former world champion Tony Harrison in March in a career-best performance that earned him the WBO's interim title.

He followed that up in June with a first-round KO over Carlos Ocampo and was recently elevated to the full WBO champion when former undisputed junior middleweight champion Jermell Charlo challenged undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez in a losing effort on September 30.

“There was no celebration, no nothing when Charlo stepped in the ring against Canelo and I became world champion. I’ll feel like a world champion once this fight with Mendoza is done,” said Tszyu.

“I want to earn it that way Brian and I are both in that top one percent of fighters in the world. He’s a style I haven’t faced before and I know he thrives on that underdog mentality. So, he of course has my respect. But he’s in there with someone that's a different breed and it’s not going to end well for him. I promise to turn any remaining non-believers into believers. This is my time and my division now.”

Originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico and now fighting out of Las Vegas, Mendoza (22-2, 16 KOs) scored one of the year’s biggest upsets in April as he blasted out the previously unbeaten Sebastian Fundora with a sensational one-punch knockout in round seven, solidifying his own status at 154 pounds by capturing the interim WBC title.

Mendoza has won three fights in a row since dropping a decision to highly touted Jesus Ramos in September 2021.