(Photo Credit: Bill Hoffman/Bruno Event Team) By Jeff Aranow: If you wonder why Chris Arreola (36-4-1, 31 KOs) was selected for WBC heavyweight champion Deontay “Bronze Bomber” Wilder (36-0,35 KOs) for his next fight on July 16, it’s because the 35-year-old Arreola stayed patient and he was the right person for the fight, according to Wilder.
It was more than a case of Arreola staying patient. Arreola was given the fight against Wilder because he’s always involved in exciting action packed fights, and he’s previously fought for world titles on two occasions.
Wilder needed a name for his next fight that would create more interest for the boxing fns tuning in to watch the fight on Premier Boxing Champions on Fox and Fox Deportes. Arreola has the name to get the fans to want to see him and Wilder fight.
It does not matter that Arreola’s career recently has been a rocky road of losses, draws and wins over less than stellar opposition. The important thing is the fans remember Arreola’s past fights during the prime of his caree,r and they’ll want to see him fight on July 16.
The Wilder-Arreola fight will be taking place at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama.
“As you see Chris Arreola stayed patient. You wonder why he continued to get title fights,” said Wilder. “It is his time. Some guys get chances after chances and some don’t. You can’t deny him. You can’t look past him. With the circumstances that we were facing, to come back and do a short notice-type fight, as far as looking for opponents, we knew it had to be the right person.”
Wilder was given very little time to find an opponent, because the World Boxing Council told him and his management that he would need to find an opponent quickly. This comes after the WBC stopped a fight between Wilder and #1 WBC mandatory challenger Alexander Povetkin after he tested positive for a banned substance. Wilder would have fought Povetkin on May 21 if the fight hadn’t been canceled by the WBC.
Wilder will either wind up facing Povetkin later on in 2016 or a new WBC mandatory challenger if the WBC decides to penalize Povetkin. Wilder and his team didn’t have much time to select an opponent for his July 16 fight. That’s one of the reasons why Arreola was selected because it was a short notice thing.
“Placing someone in a category doesn’t define who they are. We needed a fighter that would fit the description that he would fight with his heart, give it his all,” said Wilder.
Wilder would do well not to overlook the 6’3” Arreola, because that could prove to be a mistake on his part if he does.
Arreola is one of the hardest punchers in the heavyweight division, and his power rivals that of Bermane Stiverne, a fighter that Wilder defeated last year by a 12 round decision to capture the WBC heavyweight title. If Arreola is able to land his shots with any regularity against Wilder, we could see a big upset in this fight.