Deontay Wilder has vowed to produce “a devastating knockout” on Saturday night and regain his WBC title belt from Tyson Fury as the two towering heavyweights meet for a third time.
The pair fought to a split draw in December 2018, with Fury usurping the title from Wilder here in Las Vegas 20 months ago by seventh-round stoppage. Neither man has been in the ring since last February.
“My trainer, Malik Scott, has brought things out of me that no one has seen before,” Wilder said on Monday night. “This is a trilogy and boxing is winning in this fight. It’s going to be a good one while it lasts. But I will win by devastating knockout. The fight will not go the distance. It’s been a long time coming, going through a lot of obstacles and it has been an emotional roller coaster, as it has been for a lot of people in the world during this time.”
Wilder added that he was always confident the fight would go ahead, despite talk of an undisputed world title fight between Fury and Anthony Joshua. That was until June this year when a judge ruled in the USA, through an arbitration case, that Wilder had the contractual right to a rematch.
“It was all propaganda – and they both knew it. People went on the first thing they heard. These days people want to be first to say things, even if they aren’t correct. As long as I knew I had that contract the talk of them fighting did not bother me,” explained the American.
Wilder also gave his view on Joshua’s defeat to Oleksandr Usyk 10 days ago in London. “Styles make fights and Usyk had his struggles with Chazz Witherspoon and Dereck Chisora before he fought Joshua. With Joshua, Usyk just had his number at this point in time and I think he’ll have his number second time around – but who knows, this is heavyweight boxing.”
As for the third fight with Fury, Wilder added: “I’ve knocked him out once before, he knows I’m the most dangerous heavyweight in the world, I just have to be perfect for two seconds. When you have devastating power you are always going to be leader of the pack. When you have power you are never out of the fight. I have moved forward, I know what I am – and I’m glad it happened.
“It wasn’t a knockout, it was a stoppage because someone threw in the towel in my team. I can’t wait to put it right. Stay tuned, you watched then and you should watch again. It’s not going to go the distance. I can’t see it. I want it way more than him. He hasn’t trained as hard as I have trained. For that reason I can’t see it going the distance. They come to watch knockouts in the heavyweight division and I’m going to deliver. I can’t wait.”
What is it?
The third fight between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury, who will battle for the WBC heavyweight title. Fury was on track to meet Anthony Joshua for the undisputed heavyweight crown late this summer in Saudi Arabia, but the biggest fight in British boxing history collapsed when a judge in the US ruled Wilder had the contractual right to a third contest with the ‘Gypsy King’.
When is it?
The fight was set to take place on Saturday, July 24 but will now take place on October 9.
Where is it?
Fury-Wilder 3 will be held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
How to watch Fury-Wilder III on TV
The trilogy fight between Fury and Wilder will be broadcast exclusively on BT Sport Box Office. If you don’t want to pay, or if you want running text commentary of the fight, bookmark this page and return on the evening for our live blog.
What happened in the first two fights?
Fury and Wilder fought to a disputed draw in their first bout back in 2018, but Fury dominated the rematch from the outset and stopped the Bronze Bomber in the seventh round to inflict Wilder’s first career loss.
What are the fighters saying?
Tyson Fury has delayed his second Covid-19 jab until after his fight against Deontay Wilder, claiming he is “not in the risk-taking game”.
The World Boxing Council heavyweight champion confirmed he had the first vaccine shot in the summer, but said he did not want to risk any side-effects ahead of the Las Vegas showdown on October 9.
Their third fight was postponed in July after Fury contracted the virus, and he appears to have been unnerved by scare stories that the jab could affect his preparation for the bout.
“You never can tell,” Fury told BoxingScene.com. “There’s so much bull—- with all this, stories that go around. You never know what’s the truth and what’s not. So, I’m not in the risk-taking game.
“I’m in a life-threatening job, where you can get your lights knocked out with one punch. If [a second shot] was to affect me in any way, then I’d never live with myself before a big fight.”
Fury went on to clarify that he would have a second jab “when the fight’s over” and “I’ll have time to recover from it all”. Experts insist the jab is safe and Fury added that Covid had “killed a lot of people in the world and if the vaccine helps, then get it done, you know?”.
What are their records?
Tyson Fury
- Total fights 31
- Wins 30
- Wins by KO 21
- Losses 0
- Draws 1
Deontay Wilder
- Total fights 44
- Wins 42
- Wins by KO 41
- Losses 1
- Draws 1
What are the latest odds?
- Fury win – 4/11
- Wilder win – 5/2
- Draw – 28/1
(All odds via Oddschecker)
What fights are on the undercard?
Fury vs Wilder undercard action is likely to kick off around 1am BST.
- Robert Helenius vs Adam Kownacki
- Efe Ajagba vs Frank Sanchez
- Robeisy Ramirez vs Orlando Gonzalez Ruiz
- Edgar Berlanga vs Marcelo Estaban Coceres
- Jared Anderson vs Vladimir Tereshkin
- Julian Williams vs Vladimir Hernandez
- Viktor Vykhryst vs Mike Marshall