By Scott Gilfoid: WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder (35-0, 34 KOs) is eager to get inside the ring to defend his WBC title against his talented challenger Artur Szpilka (20-1, 15 KOs) in two weeks from now on 1/16.
Wilder, 30, hasn’t fought since wiping out Johann Duhaupas last September in Alabama. Wilder figures to get more of a test for his defense against Szpilka, who is one of those fighters who constantly comes forward looking to put his opponent’s lights out.
That’s good for Szpilka, because he’s going to need to try to get a KO in this fight because he definitely isn’t going to be able to outbox thje taller, faster and stronger Wilder in their fight at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
“Ohhh I can’t WAIT to get back in the ring. 2 weeks to go baby…. #BombZquad,” Wilder said on his Twitter today.
Wilder is using Szpilka as a tune-up of sorts to get him ready for a much bigger fight against #1 WBC Alexander Povetkin this year. Wilder was hoping to face #3 WBC Vyacheslav Glazkov, because he would have been the better option for him. However, Glazkov and his management pulled out of negotiations with Wilder’s promoters and instead they went after the vacant IBF heavyweight strap that was recently stripped from champion Tyson Fury.
This is going to be a much different opponent for the 6’7″ Wilder compared to his last two taller opponents Eric Molina and Johann Duhaupas, both of which were around 6’5″. Szpilka is 6’3″, and fights out of the southpaw stance. He’s easy to hit and not all that interested in his defense skills. It’s going to be really easy for Wilder to hit Szpilka without getting hit back. That’s why it’s important that Szpilka puts pressure on Wilder and tries to get near enough to him to land his big power shots. If Wilder is able to keep the action on the outside, then this will be too easy for him.
Szpilka had a career setback last year in losing to Bryant Jennings by a 10th round knockout. Jennings stayed in the pocket in that fight and was able to beat Szpilka by his own game by slugging with him. By the end of the fight, Jennings had Szpilka hurt and on the retreat. However, Szpilka has done a good job of coming back from that loss and has won his last four fights in beating these guys: Yasmany Consuegra, Manuel Quezada, Ty Cobb and Tomasz Adamek. No one from that bunch really stand out except for Adamek, but he was not exactly a spring chicken at 38, when Szpilka fought him.
Adamek also fought a dumb fight by thinking he could slug with the younger, stronger and bigger Szpilka. It wasn’t a smart fight for Adamek, and I think he let his pride take over rather than his intelligence. If Adamek had fought a smart fight, I think he would have had little problem in beating Szpilka by a decision. I don’t think he would have been able to KO him, because he had no luck in trying to do that.
The fight will be televised by Showtime at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.
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