Wilder echoes these sentiments as he describes himself as a quintessentially defiant fighter from the South.Īs the third fight has neared he has begun to talk more outrageously again. The mantra from Tuscaloosa and the Crimson Tide, as the multiple championship-winning college team is called, is that defeat is only ever a temporary setback. They are led by Nick Saban, the great college coach, who posts regular messages of support to Wilder. Wilder comes from Tuscaloosa – home of the usually dominant University of Alabama college football team. He refused to say anything at the first press conference and, in his silence, Wilder seemed to tap into his personal definition of himself as a fighter. Wilder has been a brooding presence in the long buildup to this fight, which was pushed back three months after Fury caught Covid for a second time in early July. Tyson Fury sends Deontay Wilder sprawling on to the canvas in Las Vegas last year. The stoppage was instigated by Wilder’s assistant trainer Mark Breland, a former fighter, who knew the damage was too severe to continue. He dropped Wilder in the third and the fifth rounds before the referee brought the contest to a merciful end in the seventh. From the opening bell Fury beat Wilder up with methodical, dazzling precision. He looked frazzled when he stepped out of his clanking paraphernalia. As he walked to the ring in February 2020 Wilder wore a Black History Month metal mask and costume that weighed 40lb. He was called the most destructive puncher in the history of heavyweight boxing. The controversial draw, with most experts and fans believing Fury had been a clear winner, set up the Vegas rematch.Īll the odds seemed to favour Wilder after the American won his next two fights with chilling knockouts. He somehow dragged himself off the canvas and was firing punches at an incredulous Wilder before the end of the round. It was such a brutal knockdown that Fury was briefly unconscious as he lay stretched out on his back. But in the 12th round he was dropped for the second time in the fight. Fury, having had just two warm-up bouts after his long break from the ring for mental health reasons, produced an incredible performance as he outboxed Wilder. It was the best world heavyweight title fight in years. In December 2018 Fury and Wilder drew their first encounter in Los Angeles. Many boxers are willing to risk being carried away in a box in pursuit of their dreams. He also understands boxing’s darkest truth. The damaged kings of this division can say terrible things – as Wilder proved in March 2018 when he said: “I want a body on my record.” He tried to qualify his statement by saying that, because he was prepared to die in the ring, he was also willing to take an opponent’s life.
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