Michael Zerafa (33-5) has likened Nikita Tszyu’s (10-0) behaviour to that of notorious American serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.
The comments come following the youngest Tszyu brother’s reveal that he’s been taking his wife’s placenta as a supplement and drinking breastmilk following the birth of his first child two months ago.
Tszyu faces Lulzim Ismaili (12-0) in the headliner of a pay-per-view fight night in Sydney next Wednesday, while Zerafa takes on Mikey Dahlman (18-1) in the chief support.
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Reports have linked the Aussie pair with a bout later in the year, should they both be successful next week.
Zerafa has shared a spiteful history with the Tszyus stemming from his scrapped 2021 bout with Tim.
Earlier this week, Nikita resumed hostilities when labelling the Victorian a “coward” and sharing his hope to “crush every bone in his body” in an interview with Fox Sports.
Speaking to Sporting News on Thursday, Zerafa questioned why his name was being linked to Nikita's.
“There’s no one really for me to fight. I know everyone’s talking about Nikita, but why is Nikita coming out of the woodwork? I don’t understand,” Zerafa said.
“The rivalry is between me and Tim. I don’t get what his issue is. He’s coming out and saying he wants to fight me and he’s going to end my career.
“I’d be worry about getting his chin fixed. And his head scanned.”
So he’s not a fan of Tszyu’s new health regimen?
“Whether you’re dancing in the rain with a pink skirt on or you’re drinking breast milk, it doesn’t affect me, but certain things just should not be said. That’s private,” he explained.
“Imagine me coming out and saying I’ve been having BSC protein and a glass of [fiancée] Selin’s titty milk.
“He talks about eating pigeons and drinking snake arse and watching dog’s hump. Where the hell’s the psychologist on tap here? This is ridiculous behaviour.
“I hope he does it for a headline, because it’s weird. That’s some Jeffrey Dahmer sh*t. I wouldn’t like to know what he does on a Saturday night outside of the gym.”
Zerafa, who is currently ranked in the top 15 with the IBF, WBA and WBO at middleweight, explained a fight with Nikita would get him no closer to his dream of a world title.
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So, what would make him interested in the clash?
“Depends how many zeroes are on that contract. If there’s a lot of zeroes, so be it. If there’s a big number at the front and a lot more zeroes follow it, I’m 100 per cent in,” he said.
“Or if there’s a world title, yeah, but at the moment, what has he got that I need?
“His division’s smaller, he’s behind me in the rankings, same with Tim.
“There’s a bit of, ‘I want to shut you up’ [with Tim], because of all the smack he’s spoken.
“If they say, ‘Mick, you’re fighting Tim. If you beat Tim, you’re now world number one.’
“He doesn’t bring that to the table. But if he beats me, it’s, ‘Oh, you’re back to top ten in the world, Tim.’
“I’ve got the pulling power, people need to understand that.”
Asked about his comments earlier in the week, Nikita Tszyu said he has no trouble hyping up the fight given Zerafa's history with his family.
“Boxing is most exciting when there's rivalries and you need some sort of tension between two fighters,” Tszyu told Sporting News.
“When they're always just loving each other, it doesn't sell as much.
“I don't love him, so I'll happily pull the trigger first.”
And will the fight actually eventuate?
“I'm not sure,” he added.
“I'm pretty sure it's in the works but it all depends how the results go.”