DEONTAY WILDER came to an agreement with Anthony Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn, ahead of the WBC heavyweight champion’s title defence against Tyson Fury on Saturday night in Los Angeles.
Unfortunately for boxing fans, that agreement is nothing to do with fighting Joshua in the foreseeable future. Instead, it was their view on Fury.
“There are a lot of things I don’t agree with Eddie about – I can’t stand that guy but one thing I will agree with him on is that Fury is a boring guy,” said Wilder. “You never seen in him in any exciting fights, the most exciting fight I’ve seen him in was when Cunningham laid him down on his back. Other than that, he’s a boring bloke. But he won’t have to worry about it for long. Come Saturday night, as long as he shows up, and give the fans what he want – that is all that is going to matter because I will do the rest. He is boring but I will make sure it is an exciting fight by bringing the excitement.”
Wilder and his team infamously failed to agree terms with Hearn and Joshua during long negotiations in the summer. Not long afterwards, Wilder agreed to take on Fury in an unlikely contest that is now one of the most fascinating matchups of the year.
While Fury claimed he will improvise and do whatever is necessary to win, Wilder insisted the former WBA, IBF and WBO champion was already showing signs of defeat.
“He’s nervous,” Wilder said of Fury. “He should be. I got a 90 per cent KO ratio, he has never faced a fighter of my calibre, of my style, my speed or my power, he should be nervous. He’s supposed to be a little frightened, that’s okay. This is a gladiator sport.
“You must have confidence, you must have the will to win. It’s going to be a great fight. I am the myth (I think he may have got his words mixed up) that people label me as, the one with the knockout power. He will see, he will find out for himself, up close and personal. He will have the experience to feel it for himself. All the talk goes out the window. It is going to be an experience and I’m going to give him the best experience of his life.
“I don’t feel pressure, I don’t feel nervous, I feel ready to go. This is my moment in time. I’m never nervous, I’m more excited than anything, this is what I put all my time in for, this is what I make all the sacrifices for, sacrificing my body, sacrificing my kids, a lot of things that come with boxing and I’m finally here. There are no nerves in me. There is one thing about me, I’m a play maker, I’m always shining under the big lights. Although I come from a small place, I know how to shine in the big lights.”
