LOS ANGELES—In recent years, Tyson Fury has been painfully honest about his history of mental health issues that have lead to thoughts of suicide as well as heavy alcohol and drug abuse and obesity.
Deontay Wilder revealed he’s battled suicidal thoughts and faced depression as well after his daughter Naieya was born in 2005 with spina bifida, a birth defect that occurs when the spine and spinal cord don't form properly.
“We all have mental problems,” said Wilder. “Ain’t nobody 100 percent. I’m crazy at times, you feel me. I go do things at times. I been had a gun in my hand before thinking about committing suicide. I mean, s---. It aint no different [than Fury]. Does anyone want to hear about my mental problems? I don’t think so.”
Wilder (42-0-1, 41 KOs) meets Fury (29-0-1, 20 KOs) on Feb. 22 in a highly anticipated heavyweight showdown at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas as part of an unprecedented Fox and ESPN pay-per-view promotion.
In addition to the war of attrition physically, both fighters have also been playing their fair share of mind games heading into the promotion. Wilder said he’s in a better place now, while Fury still battles depression till this day.
“I can be a role model, but you have to accept me and embrace me for who I am,” said Wilder. “I may say some crazy stuff. I may make up my own words at times. I’m human. I don’t walk a straight path, and a lot of things may go wrong in my life and it’s going to be up to me to correct them. I just tell people to accept me for who I am. I am who I am. I’m not perfect.
“I’ve always been an optimistic and happy person. I have love around me every day when I wake up. I don’t allow any negativity around me. I worked so hard to get in this position. Many times for so many years, life was not like this. I was in dark places like a lot of us who are not born with a silver spoon in our mouths. To stay so positive, it’s in me. It’s from the South. Success makes me happy too.”
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist and member of the Boxing Writers Assn. of America since 2011. He has written for the likes of the LA Times, Guardian, USA Today, Philadelphia Inquirer, Men’s Health and NFL.com and currently does TV commentary for combat sports programming that airs on Fox Sports and hosts his own radio show in Los Angeles. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan or via email at manouk.akopyan@gmail.com.