Stiverne weighed 239 pounds the first time he fought Deontay Wilder in January 2015 but almost three years on, and ‘B-Ware’ is now a whopping 254 pounds.
To put that into perspective, it’s the same weight as Anthony Joshua was for his latest bout with Carlos Takam, and despite being four inches bigger than Stiverne, many thought that was way too heavy.
For his part, Wilder came in at a trim 220 pounds for his sixth defense of the title as the American pushes towards a possible return to the UK next year.
The Heavyweight Championship rematch headlines the November 4 SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING, a Premier Boxing Champions event LIVE on SHOWTIME (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) from Barclays Center, the home of BROOKLYN BOXING™.
“Here we are again. There are no secrets the second time,” said Wilder of his rematch with Stiverne. “I know everything about him like the back of my hand.”
Looking ahead to Saturday night’s world title rematch, Wilder will fight to defend his title and resurge a career that has been riddled with setbacks, including three fights that have been canceled due to his opponents testing positive for PEDs. “I’ve done all the right things, I’m in love with this sport, but they keep killing it for me,” Wilder explained.
Full weights:
WBC HEAVYWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Deontay Wilder – 220 ¾ pounds
Bermane Stiverne –254 ¾ pounds
Referee: Arthur Mercante; Judges: Eric Marlinski (N.Y.), John McKaie (N.Y.), Steve Weisfeld (N.J.)
WBC WELTERWEIGHT WORLD TITLE ELIMINATOR
Shawn Porter – 146 ½ pounds
Adrian Granados – 146 pounds
Referee: Gary Rosato; Judges: Julie Lederman (N.Y.), Kevin Morgan (N.Y.), John Steward (N.J.)
IBF JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Sergey Lipinets – 139 ¾ pounds
Akihiro Kondo – 139 ½ pounds
Referee: Ricky Gonzalez; Judges: Carlos Ortiz (N.Y.),Tony Paolillo (N.Y.), John Poturaj (N.J.)
