Tyson Fury already entered the night as the best current heavyweight in the world.
Following a repeat knockout win over Deontay Wilder—having to recover from two knockdowns to prevail Saturday evening at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas—the belief is that the reigning lineal/WBC champion has transformed from a top heavyweight to an all-time great.
“100 percent. I’m now the greatest heavyweight in my era without a doubt,” Fury told BT Sport following an 11th round knockout win over Wilder in their all-time classic. “Number one, numero uno.”
England’s Fury (31-0-1, 22KOs) is now 2-0-1 in his three-fight series with Alabama’s Wilder (42-2-1, 41KOs), having survived four knockdowns to score five of his own during that span. Their first meeting saw Fury—who was just three fights into his comeback after having been out of the ring for nearly three years—recover from knockdowns in rounds nine and twelve to finish on his feet, only to have to settle for a disputed split decision draw.
There wasn’t any doubt left in the rematch last February, with Fury twice flooring Wilder en route to a seventh-round knockout at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The win saw the unbeaten Brit become a two-time world heavyweight champion, having previously dethroned Wladimir Klitschko in November 2015 on the road in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Saturday night saw Fury floor Wilder in round three, hit the deck twice himself in a near-disastrous round four before reclaiming control of the fight. Two more knockdowns came late in round ten and midway through round eleven, the latter enough to produce an instant stoppage. The fight was Fury’s fifth in a row in the United States, including four straight in Las Vegas where he owns a second home.
The second win over Wilder cemented Fury’s place atop the heavyweight division, while also leaving him a perfect 4-0 with four knockouts in rematches over the course of his 13-year career.
“Look what I’ve done in my last [five] fights,” pointed out Fury. “I fought the most devastating puncher in the history of our sport. Not once, not twice but three times. Danger, danger man.”
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox


