Robert Garcia Backs Tszyu Over Spence, Hints at Late Stoppage

Errol Spence Jr hasn't fought since Terence Crawford took him apart over nine rounds back in 2023. This weekend he ends a three-year absence against Tim Tszyu at Sydney's Afterpay Arena, and one of the sport's most respected trainers is already leaning hard toward the Australian.

Robert Garcia told ESPN he favours Tszyu, pointing to Spence's brutal knockout loss to Crawford and the 2019 car crash that nearly ended his career. Garcia went further, floating the possibility of a stoppage and suggesting the 36-year-old Spence may simply have nothing left. He added that he hopes he's wrong, calling Spence a great person he genuinely likes.

The Weight Question

The weight story is its own subplot. Spence got his request for an extra 2lbs approved, while Tszyu originally wanted a 156lb catchweight, settled at 158lbs, and now finds himself climbing all the way up to middleweight. That's a long way from the 154lb division where he's most comfortable.

It's worth remembering where Tszyu was three years ago. He lifted the WBO 154lb belt by outpointing Brian Mendoza in 2023, then hit a rough patch. Bakhram Murtazaliev stopped him in 2024, and Sebastian Fundora — now the WBC super welterweight champ at 24-1-1 — did the same in 2025. Two destructive finishes in as many years is not the résumé of a man on a heater.

Activity Versus Rust

But Garcia's read is that activity and health tip the scales. Tszyu, 31, has at least been in the ring. Spence has been watching from the outside since Crawford, now 42-0, handed him the most one-sided defeat of his career and later went on to outpoint Canelo Álvarez. There's precious little recent evidence Spence can rediscover the form that once made him a unified welterweight king.

Garcia's tactical advice was pointed: Tszyu should drag Spence into the later rounds, where the American's footwork and ability to slip shots could break down under fatigue and ring rust. It's a sound plan against a fighter who hasn't gone twelve hard rounds in years.

The Verdict Looms

The subtext here is uncomfortable for Spence fans. When a trainer of Garcia's standing openly wonders whether a former champion has anything left, it usually means the industry has already made up its mind. Saturday tells us whether that's fair.