Deontay Wilder is well past his prime. That’s an argument few would try to refute. Still there’s general interest in seeing the former WBC heavyweight champion square off against perennial veteran contender Derek Chisora this Saturday in England. He may be forty years of age. He may have lost two of his last three fights. He may be a man whose body has gone through hell in the three grueling title matches he engaged in with Tyson Fury. Still, London’s O2 arena will be packed this weekend to see Fury fight native son Chisora. While Chisora is no doubt the fan favorite against the towering, lanky Wilder, the fight wouldn’t be the attraction it is without the American’s presence.
And why is this? Why are fans on both sides of the Atlantic still interested in Wilder years after his heavyweight glory days? The answer can be provided by a single word: Power. People feel, or hope, that the guy can still hit like he used to when he dropped Tyson Fury on several occasions, like when he clobbered Luis Ortiz not once, but twice, like when he flattened Artur Spitzka in absolutely frightening fashion way back in 2016. That shot, the one he landed on Spitzka, was one in particular that has stuck in my mind.
It reminded me of Tommy Hearn’s one punch howitzer, the one that literally put Roberto Duran flat on his face way, way back in 1984. And while Spitzka was certainly no Duran, the impact of that single shot from Wilder has rattled around my memory ever since. That’s the thing with power punchers – they can be up and comers, has beens, or even never weres and still manage to draw attention. For there’s nothing quite as memorable in all of sports as a boxer’s knockout punch. That’s something even the hard hitting MMA great Francis Ngannou would attest to.
It was Ngannou, after all, who – after dropping and almost defeating Tyson Fury – learned what a single, well placed shot from a power punching ring technician can do. Unfortunately for Ngannou, he learned it the hard way when he was sprawled out by British powerhouse Anthony Joshua in his second professional boxing match (his first match had been against Fury).
Joshua – an opponent Wilder never got to fight in his prime.
Sure enough there was a time time when a Wilder- Joshua fight would have been the biggest match in boxing. I remember talking to Mark Breland, Wilder’s trainer, years ago and him telling me that Joshua held all the cards. Still, he never got to fight Wilder because he got knocked out by Andy Ruiz. Then he dropped two fights to Oleksandr Usyk, and one to Daniel Dubois.
Things move fast in this business. Yet some things remain steady.. like an aging fighter’s ability to turn out the lights. The fact that Wilder has that ability- as does Joshua for that matter- means that they will always be of interest to fans so long as they continue to ply their trade. And who knows? All Wilder has to do is land one of those big shots against Chisora and he might be back in the title game. Reigning divisional king Usyk has spoken of facing the guy so Wilder getting another title shot isn’t entirely out of the question.
And though the odds are certainly against Wilder ever winning a title fight again, all it takes is a single shot if you’re a man with Wilder’s power. Let’s also not forget the guy is awkward and difficult to fight. Fury is an excellent fire yet he had his hands full in all three of his fights against the fighter known as the Bronze Bomber. So while it’s true, Wilder may no longer be in his heyday there’s no way anyone can rightfully accuse him of being yesterday’s news.
