By Kenneth Friedman: Deontay Wilder says he suffered a broken are 4 weeks and 4 days BEFORE his December 2018 fight against Tyson Fury, but he didn’t let the injury stop him.
WBC heavyweight champion Wilder (42-0-1, 41 KOs) fought surprisingly well for a fighter who broke a limb just 4 1/2 weeks before the fight.
The injury that Wilder suffered might explain why he didn’t look as magnificent against Fury compared to his 2 fights since then. Wilder-Fury 1 was scored as a 12 round draw, and it was definitely not a fight in which Wilder looked to fighting at a high level.
Since that match, Wilder has destroyed Luis Ortiz and Dominic Breazeale in scoring one-punch knockouts.
Wilder talks about breaking his arm before first Fury fight
“There’s no added pressure,” said Wilder to PBC on Fox on his rematch with Fury. “I definitely blew the game plan. You can have a game plan, and then you get in the ring. There’s so much excitement.
“You want to perform, and give the crowd what they came and got dressed for,” said Wilder. “And you want to give the consumers what they paid to see, and that’s knockouts.
“I got overexcited, and started throwing wild punches,” said Wilder in explaining why he didn’t beat Fury last time they fought. “My game plan was to go to the body, and started out that way. But then it ended another way. This time around it’s a much different me. I broke my arm in camp as well.
“A lot of people don’t know that,” said Wilder remarking about his broken arm. “I don’t make excuses. Yeah, I broke my arm in camp, and I only had 4 weeks and 4 days for it to heal. Guess what? In four weeks and 4 days I was going to be in the ring.
“So I either recover fast or I fight with what’s necessary right now,” Wilder said in talking about his tough attitude on his injury. “Knowing me, I always fight with a broken arm, broken hand, torn biceps, third degree burns, it doesn’t matter to me. I’m a warrior,” said Wilder.
It’s incredible for Wilder to have fought as well as he did with him having suffered a broken arm. If Wilder is able to stay 100% healthy for the rematch with Fury, we should see a different person. It’s possible that Wilder might make short work of Fury like he did with Bermane Stiverne.
Wilder: I only have to be perfect for 2 seconds
“It’s one of those things where I’m blessed with tremendous power, and the things that I do,” Wilder said in commenting on his right-hand power. “That’s what separates me from the rest of the guys, because of my power and how I’m able to display it and use it. Not only can I use it in the 1st round, but it carries over to the 12th round.
“I always tell my opponents you have to be perfect for 12 rounds and 36 minutes,” said Wilder. “With me, I only have to be perfect for two seconds, and that’s literally. I can hit you anywhere on your body, and even on your forehead and knock you out, as we’ve seen in my last fight.
“To have this power that I have is an amazing feeling,” continued Wilder. “I’m not worried about my opponents. They have to worry more about me than I have to worry about them. A lot of people just look at one thing. I think I mesmerize them with my right hand over and over.
“The first thing people want to see is what happens when I hit a guy,” said Wilder. “And when I hit a guy, they want to see what the reaction is to see what’s going to happen if I’m going to knock them out,” said Wilder about his right hand power.
Fury did so well last time against Wilder, but he eased off twice in the later rounds. Wilder took advantage of Fury relaxing in knocking him down in rounds 9 and 12. In the second fight, Fury has to stay alert, and not drop his guard this time. Wilder now knows how to hurt Fury, and you can bet that he’s going to going after him.
Deontay admits he’s one-dimensional
“They say I have no skills, and they say I’m a ‘one trick pony,’ and I do that one trick well,” said Wilder. “As a person with Tyson Fury, I like him. A lot of times guys say certain things just to promote the fight, and maybe too boost their ego up, and boost their confidence up, especially when you get in with a guy as explosive and as powerful as myself.
“You really got to build up some kind of confidence to get in there with me,” Wilder said. “With him [Fury], he’s such a character, and he likes to have fun. He can be annoying at times for me, but when it comes to business, you can’t have no feelings towards anyone,” said Wilder.
Deontay doesn’t care whether boxing fans view him as a one-trick pony, because he’s producing results. He’s like former Major League Baseball great Nolan Ryan, who had a fastball clocked at 100mph. It didn’t matter that hitters knew that Ryan was going to throw his fastball. He still whizzed it passed them again and again. Wilder’s opponents know he’s going to try and KO them with his right hand, but they still can’t avoid it.
Fury not sure if his cut will reopen against Wilder
“The eye is healed up quite well. Is there any risk? I don’t know because I am not a surgeon,” said Fury to skysports.com on his previously cut right eye from the Wallin fight. “I am sure there will be [the risk of the cut reopening]. “There is nothing much I can do about that.
“If it opens up it opens us. It’s out of my control,” said Fury. “There is nothing I can do about that eye opening in a fight,” said Fury in taking a care free attitude on his cut.
Fury feels confident that his cut won’t reopen, but it could happen. Anytime a fighter suffers a massive cut that requires 47 stitches to close, they’re at risk of being cut in their future fights.
Whether Fury’s cut reopens are not is the least of his worries. The thing Fury needs to worry about is the concussive force of Wilder’s right hand, and left hook. That’s the biggest threat to Fury going into his rematch with Wilder.
Wilder planning on making Fury’s cut reopen
“I will make sure I open that one up and I’ll make sure I open a new one up too.” said Wilder about wanting to target Fury’s cut and then create a new one.
Wilder is just talking when he says he’s going to target Fury’s previously cut right eye. He’s not going to do that. Instead, Wilder will be trying to hit Fury as hard as he can with his right hand to KO him. If Fury gets cut along the way, then so be it, but that’s not Wilder’s objective.
It’s likely that one of the reasons Fury’s promoters at Top Rank chose not to have the immediate rematch is because Wilder had figured out his style. By having the rematch delayed by Top Rank, Wilder will have forgotten how to land his shots on Fury.