“Terrell is right up there, skill-wise. For someone to be in the American national team and an Olympian, that speaks a lot about where his skill is at.

“The pro game is a bit different, there’s politics and money and that stuff involved, whereas amateurs are based on who is the more skilful fighter.

“At one stage he was the best in America.”

Gausha’s profile doesn’t match his accomplishments, perhaps because of his reticence to trash talk and put himself into the public domain. However, Tszyu says there is no denying his credentials.

“Money talks, especially in this industry, the entertainment industry,” he said from a training camp in Thailand.

“If you’re not able to generate it, they just brush you off. In this sport it’s not sometimes who is the best boxer, that’s the craziest part about it.

“He said I was his toughest opponent. And he has fought Lara and Lubin.”

While Tszyu has been getting into shape during a training camp in Thailand, Michael Zerafa has talked up the prospect of belatedly facing him down the track.

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Zerafa, who faces Danilo Creati on the undercard of the Paul Gallen-Justin Hodges bout in Sydney next week, infamously pulled out of a scheduled showdown with Tszyu last year. He has publicly admitted he regrets that decision and still wants to fight Tszyu in the future, but the “Soul Taker” has made it clear that will never happen.

“I’m going to Vegas to fight for all four belts against the biggest name, Charlo, in the division,” Tszyu said. “Do you think I’m worrying about a guy that started making up all of these excuses to not fight me a week before a fight?

“He’s done. Dusted. Finished. End of chapter. Let him go on and do what he wants to do. He’s done. Finito.”

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