Wilder's goals for next chapter of career: Win another title, have fun, more KOs
Ex-WBC heavyweight champ returns vs. Helenius on Saturday
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Deontay Wilder had known nothing but success as a professional boxer.
Coming out of the 2008 Olympics with a bronze medal — hence his nickname “The Bronze Bomber” — Wilder roared to 40-0 with 39 knockouts.
The one distance fight in the stretch was a one-sided domination of Bermane Stiverne to win the WBC heavyweight title in 2015, a fight before which Wilder was dogged by questions about whether he could deal with being pushed into the later rounds. He provided an emphatic answer.
Then came his second distance fight, a controversial split draw with lineal champion Tyson Fury in 2018 in which Wilder scored two big knockdowns but also was outboxed for much of the fight.
Two more highlight-reel knockouts followed against Dominic Breazeale and Luis Ortiz in a rematch to push Wilder’s record to 42-0-1 with 41 knockouts and the realization by many that they were witnessing one of the greatest pure punchers in boxing history, especially with the right hand.
Then came the second and third chapters of his series with Fury and things changed. He dropped Wilder twice and eventually knocked him out in the seventh round of a one-sided rematch in 2020 to take his WBC title after 10 successful defenses.
Fury and Wilder waged the fight of the year and one of the most action-packed and memorable heavyweight title bouts in history when they met for the third time last October. Wilder, who was down in the third round, rallied to drop Fury twice in the fourth round and appeared to be moments from regaining his belt. But Fury survived and stormed back.
He knocked Wilder down again in the 10th round and knocked him out in the 11th to finish an epic fight.
It was a debilitating loss mentally and physically for Wilder, who took it hard and strongly considered retirement.
But in May he had a change of heart. It came after seeing the outpouring of love and support from his hometown fans in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where the city unveiled a life size statue of Wilder in honor of his accomplishments.
“Seeing the statue made for me in Alabama is what brought me back,” Wilder said. “My accomplishments are set in stone. But being there and seeing the people supporting me made me feel like there’s more that I can do. I’m still young. I’ve got three more years left in this business. There’s still a lot more left for me to do.”
Wilder said feeling the love from everyone who attended the ceremony made him realize that he was important to so many people and he wanted to continue his career and win again for them.
Now, he is back for a WBC semifinal title elimination bout against contender Robert Helenius in the main event of the Premier Boxing Champions card on Saturday (9 p.m. ET, Fox Sports PPV, FITE and PPV.com) at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
“Deontay is fighting for himself, as well as for the inspiration that he gives so many people,” said Malik Scott, Wilder’s trainer. “Deontay is the real people’s champ. It’s not about money. It’s not about materialistic things. It’s about him being extremely motivated and inspired by so many people that he’s touched across the world and across the nation that he’s willing to do it again. And honestly, he hasn’t taken his foot off the gas in training.”
In Helenius (30-3, 19 KOs), 38, of Finland, Wilder will face an opponent whom he has sparred many rounds with and is friendly.
“Even though we know each other well, make no mistake, when it’s time to turn it on, the fans are going to leave with another memorable moment,” Wilder said. “It’s the return of the king. I’m looking forward to returning to my second home (at Barclays Center, where he will headline for the fifth time). My second reign is going to be filled with joy and excitement for me and those who support me. I’m looking to put on great fights like I always have.”
Wilder said nobody should think that the familiarity and friendship he and Helenius have from all those rounds of sparring will mean anything in a real fight.
“Sparring someone and fighting when it actually counts are two different things. Sparring is more of a practice,” Wilder said. “I’ve never faced Helenius when it counts, so who knows what he’s going to bring. Everyone knows that fighters train harder than ever before when they face me. Hopefully, we’ll be able to bring that excitement.”
For the second and third fights with the bigger Fury, the 6-foot-7 Wilder put on weight. He was a then-career-heavy 231 pounds for the rematch against the 6-9, 273-pound Fury and an even heavier 238 to Fury’s 277 for the trilogy fight.
For the 6-6 Helenius, Wilder is back at his more usual weight, stepping on the scale Friday at 214.5 pounds. Helenius, who was 253.25 pounds, will outweigh him by nearly 40 pounds. Not a concern for the 36-year-old Wilder (42-2-1, 41 KOs).
“My weight is not going to be what we worry about in this fight or fights in the future,” Wilder said. “We gained a lot of weight the last fight, but it was more about the expectations of seeing my body a certain way. Now I’m going back to what I’m used to and what’s comfortable for me.”
That attitude is how he plans to roll in his quest for a second world title and for the rest of his career.
“I don’t feel any pressure,” Wilder said. “I’m soaking in my happiness and peace. This reign is about being happy. I don’t have anything to prove to anyone. I’ve done an amazing job in my career, so now I want to do the things that make me happy. Whatever we gain, that’s a plus.”
One thing he does want is yet another memorable knockout even if he is friendly with Helenius, who got the fight based largely on knockout wins in his past two fights against rising contender Adam Kownacki in the fourth round of their first fight, when Kownacki was undefeated, in March 2000 at Barclays Center and in the sixth-round of a rematch on the Fury-Wilder III undercard at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
“I don’t get paid for overtime,” Wilder said. “I’ve been known for the knockouts and I’m going to end my career continuing to get those knockouts.”
Wilder-Helenius TV lineup
Heavyweights: Deontay Wilder (42-2-1, 41 KOs) vs. Robert Helenius (31-3, 20 KOs), 12 rounds, WBC eliminator
Super middleweights: Caleb Plant (21-1, 12 KOs) vs. Anthony Dirrell (34-2-2, 25 KOs), 12 rounds, WBC eliminator
Heavyweights: Frank Sanchez (20-0, 13 KOs) vs. Carlos Negron (25-3, 20 KOs), 10 rounds
Bantamweights: Gary Antonio Russell (19-0, 12 KOs) vs. Emmanuel Rodriguez (20-2, 13 KOs), rematch, 12 rounds, IBF eliminator
FS1 prelims (7 p.m. ET)
Junior middleweights: Vito Mielnicki Jr. (12-1, 8 KOs) vs. Limberth Ponce (19-5, 11 KOs), 8/10 rounds
Lightweights: Michel Rivera (23-0, 14 KOs) vs. Jerry Perez (14-1, 11 KOs), 8 rounds
Heavyweights: Gurgen Hovhannisyan (3-0, 3 KOs) vs. Michael Coffie (13-2, 10 KOs), 8 rounds
Photo: Stephanie Trapp/TGB Promotions
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Physical sports patently demonstrate that talents, like anything else, are G-d-given. Look at the build of Wilder: there are plenty of black boxers beefier than him but they don't have his power.
Dan please tell me who are the people that comprise Vito mielnicki's team that trains him and were is he training?