By Ian S Palmer
The long-awaited third fight between unbeaten WBC Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury of England and former champ Deontay Wilder of Tuscaloosa, Alabama should finally take place this Saturday, Oct. 9th when the two step into the ring at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. This is the first fight for both of them since Fury stopped Wilder in the seventh round in February, 2020. Their first meeting in Dec. 2018 ended in a controversial draw. The fight can be seen on Pay-Per-View in North America and on BT Sports Box Office in the UK.
The 35-year-old Wilder beat former champ Bermane Stiverne by unanimous decision in January, 2015 to claim the WBC title, losing it to Fury in his 11th defence. Before running into Stiverne, Wilder had stopped all 32 of his opponents including Malik Scott, Owen Beck and Audley Harrison. The Bronze Bomber will climb into the ring with a fine record of 42-1-1 with 41 Kos. Wilder is a former Olympic bronze medalist who became the first American since Shannon Briggs in 2007 to own a portion of the heavyweight title when he beat Stiverne.
Wilder is basically known for two things, which are his size and his power. He stands 6-feet-7-inches tall with an 83-inch reach and has stopped every man he’s faced except Fury and Stiverne in their first meeting. However, he stopped Stiverne with a second remaining in the first round of their November 2017 rematch and dropped Fury in the ninth and 12th rounds during their draw in their first meeting. Therefore, Wilder has dropped every opponent he’s faced as a pro even though Fury remained on his feet in the second bout.
Wilder has 150 rounds experience under his belt since turning pro in 2008 and his knockout ratio currently stands at a highly-impressive 93.2 per cent. Just six of his 41 KO victims have made it past the fifth round. However, they were six of his last 11 opponents; Luis Ortiz (twice), Eric Molina, Johann Duhaupas, Artur Szpilka and Chris Arreola. So in general, Wilder’s fights are lasting longer than they were earlier in his career even though he destroyed Dominic Breazeale in 137 seconds in May, 2019. As for the ability to take a punch, Wilder was nailed by Ortiz in their first fight and by Fury, but showed resilience and a lot of heart.
The 33-year-old Fury of Manchester, will technically be defending his lineal title on Saturday night as well as the WBC Crown. He looked impressive against Wilder in their first outing even though he was decked twice along the way and had his own way in the rematch. He did what he had to against Wilder, but his questionable chin possibly turned a victory in the first fight into a draw as he had to pick himself up from the canvas twice.
Other than his bouts against Wilder, Fury has achieved just one other true moment of glory as a pro boxer and that came in November, 2015 when he upset Wladimir Klitschko by unanimous decision to win the IBF, WBO, IBO, WBA and lineal world titles. However, it was arguably the worst heavyweight title fight in history. After beating Klitschko, Fury was soon stripped of his belts and suspended for drug use, but still does lay claim to the lineal heavyweight crown.
Fury is one of the bigger heavyweights out there as he stands 6-feet-9-inches tall with a wingspan of 85 inches which gives him a two-inch edge in height and reach over Wilder. He’ll enter the ring with a mark of 30-0-1 with 201 Kos and has 193 rounds under his belt since turning pro in 2008 following a good amateur career. He has better-than-average power, with a current knockout ratio of 67.7 per cent but has gone the distance in four of his last seven outings. Fury possesses good but awkward and unconventional boxing skills and also been been dropped by Steve Cunningham and Neven Pajkic.
Fury’s biggest wins were obviously against Wilder and Klitschko but Klitschko basically gave his titles away by not engaging with him. Other than that, Fury has beaten some pretty good journeymen along the way such as Francesco Pianeta, Otto Wallin, Christian Hammer, Dereck Chisora (twice), Joey Abell, Cunningham, Kevin Johnson, Marcelo Luiz Nascimento and Vinny Maddalone. Since turning pro Fury has also captured the English, Commonwealth, British, Irish, European, WBO Inter-Continental and WBO International Heavyweight Titles.
Prediction…
Wilder and Fury spark controversy wherever they go as both of their fights have resulted in heated debates. Many fans argue about the winner of the first meeting and Fury’s alleged glove tampering and illegal tactics in the ring in the rematch, which resulted in a point deduction in the fifth round. Wilder parted ways with trainer Mark Breland after that fight when he threw the towel in to stop it. He’s now working with Malik Scott. Fury will always be susceptible to Wilder’s power and will try to use his style and size once again to stay away from a firefight as he’s always at risk if he stands his ground and fights. In a way though, his chin has probably helped him perfect his movement and boxing skills but he’s always vulnerable to a flush power punch. Wilder needs to wade in and land as many heavy shots as he can or he’ll simply be outboxed. It’s easier said than done though against Fury. This fight could go either way and another draw isn’t out of the question. Wilder showed a lot of heart in the second fight as he was basically out on his fight and when he did get dropped he got back up. Fury couldn’t didn’t stop him until the towel was thrown in. Wilder appears to be on a mission here but that could also work against him if his anger isn’t controlled. This is another tossup but I have a feeling Wilder will regain the title.
