Hong Kong boxer Rex Tso no match for world champion in Amman Olympic qualifiers
- The 32-year-old Hong Kong champion outclassed by Mirazizbek Mirzakhalilov
- The ‘Wonder Kid’ gets another chance to qualify for Tokyo in fifth-sixth place box-off on Wednesday night
Hong Kong star boxer Rex Tso Sing-yu put up a game fight but it wasn’t enough to stop world featherweight champion Mirazizbek Mirzakhalilov, of Uzbekistan, in the quarter-finals of the Asia/Oceania Olympic qualifiers in Amman, Jordan, on Monday night.
Tso knew he would have it extremely tough and although he boxed valiantly, his Uzbek opponent proved too good, scoring a convincing unanimous 5-0 victory at the Prince Hamzah Hall.
Mirzakhalilov, who was the No 1 seed in the tournament and was also last year’s Jakarta Asian Games gold medallist, was too quick and powerful for 32-year-old Tso, who reverted to amateur status more than two years after concluding a glorious career as an unbeaten professional.
However, Tso proved no match for the 25-year-old Uzbek champion who scored punches almost at will, impressing in the third and final round with a burst of body shots to Tso’s stomach.
Tso showed glimpses of brilliance and even put his opponent momentarily on the canvas but the Uzbek was never in trouble. Mirzakhalilov was in control from the opening bell in the featherweight (57kg) contest and although Tso tried to stay in the fight with a few shots of his own, the Hong Kong champion couldn’t keep up.
Tso has one more chance to make it to Tokyo on Wednesday and he remained upbeat despite the setback, vowing to give his all in the fifth/sixth place box-off.
“I was feeling great. From the very beginning, I could feel his power and speed. He was much faster than me and his experience was there, too. I wanted to fight back in the second round but he threw a lot of combinations,” said Tso after the fight.
“I tried to counterpunch and avoid his punches. He got in at least six times. His frequency was very high and I couldn’t counterpunch. I could take his power and my fitness was good but he was too fast,” said the Hong Kong star.
“I’m sorry to Hong Kong people that I lost. I vow to continue fighting hard. I still have one more fight [in Amman] and I will try my best.”
The Uzbek also threw double and triple uppercuts in the third round, solidifying his reputation as an Olympic gold medal prospect in Tokyo. Six boxers from Amman in the featherweight division automatically qualify for Tokyo.
At the end of the bout, both fighters hugged to show respect for each other.
I was moved when Hong Kong won, says Rex Tso after reaching Olympic qualifying quarter-finals
Tso will have another chance to qualify on Wednesday night against’s Iran’s Daniyal Shahbakhsh, who retired in his previous fight. Losing that he will have one last throw of the dice in a World Olympic Qualification Event in Paris from May 13-20. The Amman qualifiers had been moved from coronavirus-hit Wuhan in January.
Tso is aiming to become the first Hong Kong boxer in 56 years to take part in the Olympics since Law Hon-pak and Lee Kam-wah represented the then-colony at the 1964 Tokyo Games.
