By Jim Maltzman: Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman wants to see Deontay Wilder do a better job of disguising his right hand shots that he throws against Tyson Fury. Keith thought Wilder (42-0-1, 41 KOs) was too keyed up, and looking to land his right hand shots with everything on them.
The former welterweight champion Thurman thinks it’s a good idea for Wilder to setup his right hands by throwing a jab first rather than just unloading with lead right hands like last time he fought him in 2018.
In Wilder’s recent 7th round knockout win over Luis Ortiz last November. Thurman liked the way he disguised the power on his right hand knockout punch by seemingly throwing it in an effortless man. The shot had on it, and it caught the 40-year-old Ortiz off guard, and he was knocked out
Fury will be challenging Wilder for his WBC heavyweight title on February 22 in a rematch on ESPN and Fox pay-per-view at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Thurman wants Fury to try and land a big shot
“Let’s see if Tyson Fury is actually trying to land a big punch or if that was just all talk,” said Thurman to Fighthub. “Deontay Wilder got a knockdown in the 12th round to get a draw, which means he was losing. You could tell he wasn’t focused on winning rounds.
“We don’t know if he’ll ever be focused on winning rounds,” Thurman said of Wilder. “I don’t think he needs to open up like he was throwing against Tyson Fury. He was clearly trying to hit him with a monstrous big blow.
“So let’ s see if he can disguise it, because when he hit Luis Ortiz last time, it was straight down the pipe, and it looked like any other right hand from any day of the week, but it just happened to be tremendously powerful,” said Thurman.
You can’t compare Ortiz, 6’3″, with Fury because both guys are so different with their size, and the way they fight. Wilder was able to knockout Ortiz with a right hand because the Cuban fighter was standing in front of him without moving in the 7th.
Fury probably won’t give Wilder the same opportunities that Ortiz did. Even if Fury does stand in front of Wilder, he’ll be reacting to everything he throws by retreating. It would be more entertaining if Fury stands his ground, but he’s not going to do that. Fury’s chance of willing depends on him not getting touched too often by Wilder’s right hand.
Fury not making Wilder pay after he misses with shots
“Once again, Wilder fought somebody that was smaller than him, right?” said Thurman. “It’s very unique when you’re used to being the biggest man in the room, and then all of a sudden you’re not. That’s got to be a very awkward feeling. You could see that awkwardness in his first performance [against Fury].
“Luckily this is the second time. Ultimately, we don’t know,” said Thurman when asked if Wilder will get the knockout. “We know it can happen. He knocked him down twice, and Tyson Fury still got up. Fury is always trying to take something off the punches.
“He’s always trying to move his head. He tilts over here [Thurman leans to the side],” said Thurman on Fury. “So Tyson Fury is always trying to take the power away from Deontay Wilder. He’s trying to make him miss. When you can get someone to miss like that, you’re supposed to make them miss and make them pay.
“Maybe someone got in his head, and told him, ‘You make this guy miss a lot, and you make him pay.’ So maybe he feels like, ‘I am going to make him pay. I’m knocking him out. He knocked me down twice. I’m getting back in the ring, and I’m knocking him out,” said Thurman.
The only thing Fury was comfortable with throwing was his jabs, but that was enough for him to win half the rounds.
Thurman wants Wilder to disguise his right hand
“I know what we’re going to see for the most part,” said Thurman in previewing the Wilder vs. Fury 2 rematch. “One guy is trying to dominate with his skills, and the other guy is doing what he does best. Dropping bombs. Does he just drop the bomb or does he try to put some tempo into it, and try and keep up with Tyson’s movement, and cut off the ring, and work behind the jab.
“Pretty much instead of just dropping the bomb and sending the missile down the pipe,” Thurman said of Wilder. “A little cloaking behind the jab, and then boom, send the missile. I would like to see that. Tyson, he was throwing a lot of triple jabs. Is he going to be that active with his jab in this fight in comparison to the first fight?
“If so, he was doing a lot of jab-jab-jab,” Thurman said about Fury.”I would like to see Deontay sit there and give it right back to him. A jab for a jab, and not just let him float around, and do what allowed him to do to get so many of those rounds in the book with the touch and go, touch and go, touch and go,” said Thurman.
It’s too bad Thurman isn’t Wilder’s coach because he could use some help with “CLOAKING” his right hand. Too many times in his fight with Fury, Wilder telegraphed his right hand by throwing it without setting it up with anything.
Like Thurman said, Wilder was putting everything he had in his rights without varying the power. This made Fury hyper-alet to make sure he didn’t get hit with any of Wilder’s right hand shots, which would help explain the absence of offense from the British fighter.
