By Jake Tiernan: Deontay Wilder says he plans to provide the world with “the best fights” in the next three years before he walks into the sunset.
The former WBC heavyweight champion Wilder’s first stop is a mega-fight with Anthony Joshua, which could potentially take place in early 2024 in Saudi Arabia.
With the recent change in control in Saudi boxing, with the focus now on celebrity/crossover fights involving Tyson fighting MMA guys, the Wilder vs. Joshua could wind up in another country, possibly the UK.
Wilder (43-2-1, 42 KOs) isn’t saying who other big fights he wants to provide fans, but you can catch off Oleksandr Usyk, Andy Ruiz Jr., and a rematch with Fury as ones that won’t happen. That leaves these options for Wilder to fight in the next three years before retirement:
Anthony Joshua
Jared Anderson
Filip Hrgovic
Arslanbek Makhmudov
Zhilei Zhang
Joe Joyce
Frank Sanchez
Martin Bakole
These are good fights, but only the Joshua match-up can be considered a great one. Joshua has looked pretty timid lately since his knockout loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. in 2019, and it could be a let down by fans if he fights scared against Wilder.
Wilder hasn’t fought since last October, when he scored a first round knockout over his former sparring partner Robert Helenius. It’s important that Wilder return to the ring soon, be it Joshua or another opponent, if the Saudis turn away from making that fight.
“When you’re in the business that I’m in, and you’re going up against someone with power, you worry about the consequences that’s going to happen,” said Deeontay Wilder to Frenzee Broadcasting. “Money is good, but you got to enjoy it.
“I’m going to bless the world my last three years with some of the best fights they ever seen, the people they want as long as they don’t run,” continued Wilder.
It’s questionable whether Wilder’s last three years will be against popular heavyweights because there’s only a small handful of them, and two of them, Usyk & Fury, have no interest in fighting him.
“If you’re making money and can’t enjoy it, then people think differently,” said Wilder. “So, I’ve had a lot of people throughout my career because of the power I possess.
“Of course, we have to say things and certain guys have to put out there to make it seem like ‘I’m not running, I’m not a coward, I’m not scared.'”
Many boxing fans believe Joshua & his promoter Eddie Hearn have been “running” from Wilder since 2018, making it impossible for him to get a fight against him. That might not change.
“Of course, their promoters & managers and even themselves would put things out,” said Wilder. “Emotional garbage thrown, but in reality, they’re scared. I got a lot of guys right now. We could have made great money, but they dodged it.
“They don’t know that I know. They know deep down in their heart who it is. At this moment in time, no one is safe. All the great fights will happen before the end of my career,” said Wilder.
It’s just fear that causes fighters to fail to land fights with Wilder. They also price themselves out by asking for the moon & the stars, thinking they’re going to get big cash.
When that fails to happen, they’re not willing to lower their demands, perhaps because of fear. No one wants to be on the receiving end of one of Wilder’s big fight hand bombs and wind up asleep on the canvas like we saw with Helenius & Fury.
“I don’t have to lift weights. If I had to fight myself, knowing that I have tremendous power. I don’t even have to exercise [to continue to be powerful],” said Deontay.
