Nikita Tszyu’s Hannibal Lecter-impersonating next opponent vows to punish son of boxing great after attempting to tee up fight the DAY AFTER his wedding
- Local Newcastle boxer Darkon Dryden is relishing chance to fight Nikita Tszyu
- Boxers poised to square off on October 8 at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre
- Dryden, 28, is unbeaten in four career fights, is injury free after back complaint
- Will enter ring against Tszyu, 24, decked out in terrifying Hannibal Lecter mask
Nikita Tszyu beware – Darkon Dryden is coming for you – and he will have the hometown support in Newcastle next month when it is showtime in the ring.
Dryden, 28, who is unbeaten in four career fights – all by KO – also had a message for the son of Aussie boxing legend Kostya Tszyu ahead of their October 8 bout – he will be a ‘live dog’ at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre in Broadmeadow.
The father of two won’t be hard to spot – as he enters the venue prepared to go to war, he will be decked out in a Hannibal Lecter mask.
Dryden this week revealed he was first contacted by Team Tzsyu the day after his wedding at Port Macquarie, on the NSW mid-north coast, in March.
The orthodox fighter – nicknamed ‘Dynamite’ – is adamant it was no coincidence.
How Darkon ‘Dynamite’ Dryden will enter the ring when he fights Nikita Tszyu at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre on October 8
Nikita Tszyu (right) is forging his own career in boxing, following the lead of his father Kostya and brother Tim Tszyu
‘So I know what they’re doing,’ Dryden told News Corp.
‘I’d just put a beer photo on my Instagram story. ‘Then all of a sudden ‘ring, ring’ – I get a phone call asking if I want to fight Nikita Tszyu in 30 days.
‘I said there was no way I could make the weight in that time, I wasn’t even near a gym.
‘But I wasn’t going to say no a second time.’
Dryden added a six-week preparation is enough time for his conditioning to be up to scratch, has been ‘working his a*rse off’ when training and is ready to be a ‘live dog.’
After making his professional debut in 2016 – and registering three wins within six months – Dryden was then out of action for close to four years with a back injury.
Later he discovered he had fractured the L1 in his vertebrae – and the only remedy was rest.
Dryden later admitted hating the sport and suffered from depression – but now is ready to put a stain on the Tszyu boxing name.
Tszyu, 24, is unbeaten in three career fights.
After graduating from the exclusive Newington College in 2015, he completed a Bachelor of Architectural Design at UTS and then forged a career in the field.
He returned to the ring in 2021 and is looking to follow the path of his older brother, Tim Tszyu, who is regarded by many as Australia’s current leading boxer.
Advertisement