Deontay Wilder has a tough test in front of him with Cuban heavyweight Luis Ortiz on Saturday on FOX pay-per-view, but the WBC champion can’t help but think about his potential next opponent in Tyson Fury.
The two are set for a rematch of their own on Feb. 22, and Wilder is already starting to amp up that fight promotion as well.
“I’m not worried about Tyson Fury. Hopefully they are doing the things they need to do to keep the eye recovered. Because when the time comes in February, I’m going to knock him out again, and this time he’s not going to get, no matter how slow the referee counts. He’s going to be on his back looking up at the lights,” Wilder told BoxingScene.com in an interview.
“Fury is not known here. Just look at his ticket sales. In his mind, he thinks he’s bigger than he is. He needed something to get his name out. But they’re promoting him wrong in my opinion, with American outfits making him look like Apollo Creed. He looks like a clown. He needs to stay true to his roots. I’m not going to change my identity so people can like me. They are looking at him, laughing.”
Wilder had to score two knockdowns of Fury in their matchup last December to come away with a draw. It was Fury’s third fight after returning from a near 3 ½ year layoff after overcoming substance abuse issues, mental illness and severe weight gain.
“He comes from a story of mental illness. That’s something that everybody deals with all of the time. Here in America, we love success stories and forgiveness, and it seems like for foreigners, we have more heart-felt feelings,” said Wilder.
“If I were to do the things that Tyson Fury has done in his career, and fought the people that he’s fought, I’d be more crucified more than I already am. But we all know the double standard.”
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 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.
