After a smashing victory over Bermane Stiverne on Saturday, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman has this to say about the reigning WBC champ – he reminds him of Larry Holmes, Muhammad Ali, and even Mike Tyson all in one.
Wilder worthy of those names?
Well, Deontay Wilder has had a spotless record since his professional debut into the sport of boxing, holding a record of 39-0 with 38 knockouts. But it isn’t his record that makes him at par with the legends of boxing, but in his performance in the ring.
According to Sulaiman, Wilder’s great jab resembles that of Larry Holmes, his acting and passion when he knocked his opponent down like the passion of Muhammad Ali, and his powerful fists were like that of Mike Tyson. While these comments may not sit well with other heavyweight greats of this time, one would give the benefit of the doubt to Wilder. At only 32, he’s the reigning WBC champion. And his next goal is to be able to fight Anthony Joshua to win the IBF/WBA heavyweight championship title.
Wilder Challenges Joshua
It was with ease that Deontay Wilder put an end to the hopes of Stiverne to ever get his WBC championship belt back. Wilder was able to knock him down 3 times in the first round with Stiverne not even being able to land a single punch. While Stiverne was busy keeping his defenses up, Wilder simply stood all this length and stared him down. Wilder wouldn’t have any of Stiverne’s evading and went in for the kill 3 times in the first round, with the third knockout finally bringing an end to Stiverne’s dreams of getting back the title. After the match, it was with confidence that Wilder called out a challenge to Anthony Joshua to fight him.
Anthony Joshua’s team on the other hand is taking their time mulling over this future fight against Wilder. They plan to push back the fight 12 to 18 months later, to be able to draw in more money. Talks have surfaced that Wilder isn’t at par with Joshua with his record not even showing a worthy opponent that he’s taken down. Joshua, on the other hand, is reigning strong and supreme as the IBF/WBA champion. He’s one of the biggest sports stars in the United Kingdom, being the Olympic super heavyweight gold medalist during the 2012 Olympics and has even made three title defenses, including one against long time champion Vladimir Klitschko. Joshua’s fight alone can draw in a crowd of 90,000 to a sold out Wembley Stadium in April, bringing Klitschko to retirement. He drew another 78,000 number of people at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales against Carlos Takam in October.
The future for Deontay Wilder
Deontay Wilder already has several fights lined up, but there’s none that he wants more than the match with Anthony Joshua. In a statement Wilder made, he says: “A king don’t chase the peasants. A king takes kings. I want Joshua…” If this fight doesn’t come through, Wilder’s party has other plans. If it does, it will definitely bring in a lot of audiences the world over. `
