Rising junior middleweight contender Tim Tszyu is looking to make another statement when he returns on March 31 in Newcastle, against veteran Dennis Hogan.

2020 was a big year for Tszyu - as he went right through former world champion Jeff Horn and then demolished Bowyn Morgan.

Tszyu is widely viewed as a future superstar in Australia - but Hogan and his handlers are far from impressed.

"This is a great tune-up for him to get back on the world stage,” Hogan’s manager, Danny Dimas, said. “We’re not underestimating Tim. Tim’s a great fighter, a great Australian fighter. Dennis is a world class fighter.”

All three of Hogan’s career losses have come when challenging for a world title. There are many who believe he did more than enough to defeat then WBO 154-pound champion Jaime Munguia in 2019 in Mexico.

But, Tszyu views Hogan's fight with Munguia as a loss - not a victory snatched away by the judges.

“The history books don’t say that,” Tszyu said. “A loss is a loss. You can’t go back. But look, he’s going to be a tough competitor, tough challenger.

“As they say, he’s world class. But I think he’s just under that world class [standard] because he’s never been able to get to the top. But look, I need to beat a ‘Dennis Hogan’ to be where I want to be.

“I see another confident opponent who doesn’t know what they’re running into. That’s the best thing about boxing — once you get in the ring, everything from before, everything after, everything shuts away, and it’s just you and your opponent in that particular moment. [The goal is] to take their soul and their belief and everything they’ve ever worked for ... it’s not just [about] the W, it’s taking everything away.”