Deontay Wilder: record, next fight and profile →
Former cruiserweight champion and Sky Sports pundit Tony Bellew is not fully confident that a rematch between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury will take place in February. At the moment, Fury is looking to return on a date in October, with Jarrell Miller and Trevor Bryan being mentioned as potential opponents.
The predictions are in from around the boxing world and the expert group that was polled is nearly split 50-50, but overall gives eight-division champion Senator Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao a slight edge over WBA Welterweight World Champion Keith "One Time" Thurman ahead of their Premier Boxing Champions on FOX Sports Pay-Per-View main event this Saturday from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Five weeks after his biggest potential payday went away, Dillian Whyte won’t publicly lament his decision to pass on a rematch against Anthony Joshua. Whyte could’ve fought Joshua again April 13 at Wembley Stadium in London. The heavyweight contender passed, however, on what he considered an insufficient offer from promoter Eddie Hearn.
The recent decision by the World Boxing Council (WBC) to assign a “Franchise champion” tag to World middleweight champ Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez has created confusion among what any longer qualifies as a title or unification bout. Among the other WBC titlists named by the sanctioning body as future candidates for the label is unbeaten heavyweight Deontay Wilder, who with his next win will record his 10th successful title defense. A date has yet to be assigned for such a fight, which reportedly will come in the form of a rematch with top-rated contender Luis Ortiz.
Tyson Fury declared Sunday that his rematch with Deontay Wilder is now ‘confirmed and signed.’ The 30-year-old lineal heavyweight champion, who fought to a draw with Wilder last December 1, agreed to a deal to fight the WBC champion again February 22. England’s Fury opted out of an immediate rematch to sign a co-promotional agreement with Top Rank and ESPN and was last in the ring June 15, when he stopped previously undefeated German Tom Schwarz inside two rounds at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Dillian Whyte is really lashing out at WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder. In recent interviews, Wilder has blamed Whyte for the long delay with respect to the two of them facing each other. Whyte has been the WBC's top rated contender for over 600 days and believes the sanctioning body is protecting the champion from facing him.
PROVIDENCE, R.I.—Like most in the industry, Eddie Hearn is still trying to wrap his head around the World Boxing Council’s newly rolled out “Franchise champion” policy. The first to receive such designation from the Mexico-based sanctioning body was none other than Mexican icon and World middleweight king Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez. The suggested upgrade gives Alvarez—and any future Franchise champions—the freedom to pursue the biggest fights without having to be burdened with mandatory defenses.
Heavyweight contender Dillian Whyte has continued to verbally lash out at the World Boxing Council and their heavyweight champion, Deontay Wilder. Whyte has been sitting in the number one position in their rankings for over 600 days. He returns to the ring on July 20th, when he faces undefeated contender Oscar Rivas at The O2 Arena in London.
Promoter Eddie Hearn has serious doubts that Tyson Fury will move forward with a contest against Jarrell Miller. Hearn believes Fury's co-promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank, will keep the boxer away from any opponent who presents the slightest threat - in order to preserve a potential rematch with WBC world champion Deontay Wilder.
Former cruiserweight champion Tony Bellew has tipped Tyson Fury as the top man of the heavyweight class - and believes he would beat everyone in the weight division - if the contest crossed beyond the fourth round. He feels confident that Fury would beat both Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua - unless either boxer was able to catch Fury cold in the early rounds.