Tugstsogt Nyambayar brings experience against Chris Colbert

Tugstsogt Nyambayar moves up a division to challenge Chris Colbert for his interim WBA super featherweight boxing title on July 3 on Showtime. 

Tugstsogt Nyambayar isn’t a name that rolls off the tongue easily, but the boxer from Mongolia deserves a ton of respect for his accomplishments in the boxing ring. He certainly deserves more respect than his July 3 opponent Chris Colbert is currently offering.

Colbert (15-0, 6 KOs) isn’t the only one shorting Nyambayar on respect. Oddsmakers see Nyambayar as a heavy underdog against the undefeated WBA interim super featherweight champion. According to Wynnbet.com, Nyambayar is an 8-1 underdog against Colbert. Yes, Colbert’s record is flawless, and Nyambayar’s isn’t, but he has more than a puncher’s chance.

One of the reasons that odds might be so stacked against Nyambayar is because he’s moving up in weight. Nyambayar is making his super featherweight debut, although he’s still able to make the featherweight limit. In truth, Nyambayar had no plans to move up before being offered the Colbert fight.

“I had no plan on fighting 130 like within the next one or two years,” Nyambayar told FanSided through an interpreter. “I had just a good opportunity to fight this fight.”

Nyambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) might not be a natural super featherweight, but he’s not giving much up in size to Colbert. While Colbert does have a 4-inch reach advantage, he’s only one inch taller than Nyambayar at 5-foot-8.

Some will be blinded by the zero at the end of Colbert’s record and the odds, but Nyambayar is a legitimate threat in this contest. He has a 69 percent knockout rating, and his lone loss came against WBC featherweight champion Gary Russell Jr. by decision in 2020.

Tugstsogt Nyambayar carries a sterling amateur boxing background with him as he moves up to super featherweight to challenge Chris Colbert

There’s not much separation in experience between Nyambayar and Colbert during their professional careers, but Nyambayar had an extensive amateur career and started boxing at the age of five in Mongolia.

“My grandfather’s from military so, my grandfather teach me like watching punches and then doing little bit of mitts at the age of five,” said Nyambayar. “I used to fight with little kids like wearing one glove and just little kinds of fun sparring at a young age.”

Nyambayar also trained in judo, but his entrance to a local boxing gym at 14 years old led him further down his boxing path. It didn’t take long for coaches to see that Nyambayar had natural fighting talent.

“All the coaches they were talking about me and how talented I am, like naturally talented,” said Nyambayar. “Then they were talking about me, I will be Olympic champion one day, and then they would just take it very seriously. But I didn’t know my talent at that time.”

Nyambayar nearly proved his coaches’ predictions correct as he took a silver medal at the 2012 Olympics. Before medaling at the Olympics, he placed highly at numerous world boxing tournaments, including winning the gold medal at the 2010 World University Championships.

Despite all of Nyambayar’s accomplishments as an amateur, Colbert isn’t giving his opponent any chance of winning.

In the final press conference before the fight, Colbert said, “I know one thing for sure and two things for certain, I know damn well he ain’t beating me. And that’s a promise.”

Colbert also said that it’s impossible that a featherweight moving up is going to knock him out. His confidence is admirable to a degree, but anything is possible in a boxing bout. Regardless of Nyambayar’s weight class, he’s a power puncher capable of knocking out anyone near his size.

They say ignorance is bliss. Perhaps Colbert is unaware of Nyambayar’s background and previous accomplishments, but that would be a major miscalculation on his part. Confidence is good, but overconfidence can lead to disappointment.

Nyambayar isn’t the biggest name in boxing, but they always say it’s the quiet ones you need to worry about. He’s a soft-spoken individual, but he has power in both hands with an Olympic medalist’s boxing I.Q. Don’t be surprised if there’s an upset from Dignity Health Sports Park on Saturday, July 3.

Watch Chris Colbert vs. Tugstsogt Nyambayar on Saturday, July 3, from Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California. You can watch the contest on Showtime. Coverage begins at 9 p.m. ET.