Deontay Wilder has made his response to Oleksandr Usyk after he was called out for a showdown with the heavyweight king.
Former WBC heavyweight champion Wilder ended a year-long layoff in June as he halted little-known customer Tyrrell Herndon.
His finish arrived in the seventh round of their otherwise uneventful contest, with Wilder claiming his first victory since a one-round demolition job against Robert Helenius in 2022.
But while his return against Herndon was a largely one-sided fight, there are still many doubts regarding the 40-year-old’s capabilities at world level.
A punishing fifth-round stoppage defeat to Zhilei Zhang last year would suggest that Wilder, though still effective at a certain level, is now a far cry from his former self.
Add to that a wide points loss to Joseph Parker in 2023, so it is perhaps wise to suspect that ‘The Bronze Bomber’ is no longer the devastating knockout artist of old.
But Usyk, who still holds three of the four major belts at heavyweight, has nonetheless decided to call the American out.
The Ukrainian admitted that Fabio Wardley, quite simply, does not interest him as a potential opponent, which is ultimately why he elected to vacate his WBO title.
Instead, the 38-year-old, who has not fought since his fifth-round stoppage victory over Daniel Dubois last July, is far more intrigued by a potential fight with Wilder.
Speaking with ESNEWS, Wilder expressed his appreciation for Usyk’s latest comments regarding his future in the sport.
“Usyk, Usyk, Usyk – this is for you, Usyk. I just wanna say to Usyk: I appreciate you for thinking of me.
“To have the boxing fans raging, and going crazy, [over] something that ain’t even happened yet, it’s almost like believing in something that you can’t see.
“To have this opportunity [against Usyk], it would be a blessing. I can’t wait to hear more details, and give the fans what they wanna see.”
